Chris & Sirkka gave us some fennel since ours is done, and it completely dominated this meal. Sautéed and then braised a bit to soften- with only oil, lemon, salt, and pepper- it was meltingly smooth, sweet, and sublime. The pan-roasted salmon (well-done by request) and mashed sweet potato/Japanese yam combination were fine, even delicious, but the fennel was on another plane entirely.
I’m familiar with fennel as a seed or a pollen for flavoring, but not as a veggie! What part do you cook? Left bottoms? Root? Hard to tell from your photo. Because Cookiecrumb recently turned me on to fennel and because I have a giant volunteer plant in my garden, I’m curious.
The bulb, and as much of the stalks as you like- they can get tough as the plant gets bigger. The bulb has a hard white core that you can cut out before cooking. The leaves make a beautiful herb/garnish, and any part of it juiced can be great to drink or make reduction sauces. Try braising it with a bit of white wine, or thinly shaved raw in a salad with fall fruit and greens.