It doesn't sound like you did anything wrong at all. Sounds delicious. I like to top mine with some good Parmesan Regiano, but it is great without that too. Fennel is such a great vegetable. I love it raw and I also love it cooked. The longer you cook it, the milder it gets so if you are not crazy about black licorice then you will like it cooked a lot better than raw.
Here are a few of my fennel recipes:
Baked Fennel with Parmesan
2 lbs. Fennel, washed and cut in half
4 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400. Cook fennel in large pan of boiling water until tender, but not mushy. Drain.
Cut fennel lengthwise into 4 or 6 pieces. Place them in a buttered baking dish.
Dot with butter and sprinkle with parmesan. Bake until cheese is golden brown, about 20 min. Serve right away.
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Fennel and Orange Salad
2 large fennel bulbs, about 1 ½ lbs.
2 sweet oranges
2 scallions
For the dressing
4 tablespoons EVOO
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper
Wash fennel and remove any brown or stringy outer leaves. Slice the bulbs and stems into thin pieces. Place in shallow serving bowl.
Peel oranges with a sharp knife, cutting away the pith. Slice thinly. Cut each slice into thirds. Arrange over fennel, adding any juice from the oranges.
For the dressing, mix oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over salad. Mix well.
Slice scallions thinly. Sprinkle over salad. Sprinkle with a little salt.
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Fennel, Apple, Celery Salad with Cilantro and Lemon
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse grained salt and cracked black pepper
2 large apples, julienned
1 medium head fennel, cored and thinly sliced
3 large ribs celery, sliced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped or more to taste
In a large non-reactive bowl, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add the apples, fennel, celery and cilantro. Toss until well combined. Taste and adjust seasonings.
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Green Salad, Fennel Apple, Pecans
Balsamic vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, pressed or minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons olive oil
6 cups tornup green leaf lettuce, washed and spun dry
1 cup tornup radicchio, washed and spun dry
1/2 large Granny Smith apple, cut into 12 thin slices
2/3 cup thinly sliced fennel
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
Combine the vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper in a medium size bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Mix the lettuce and radicchio in a salad bowl. Just before serving pour on the dressing and toss.
Divide the salad among 4 salad plates. Place 3 apples slices on one side of each salad, and one quarter of the fennel on the other side. Sprinkle the pecans all over the salads.
Serve immediately.