Rabbit Season
My first encounter with cooking rabbit was almost an accident. I was a commis (an unpaid culinary hopeful who is, in turn, worked like a used mule) in the kitchen of a student-run restaurant. One day we were especially slow and everyone else had been assigned a station. I asked the Chef what needed to be done. He pointed at a mass of fresh rabbits on a work table; “Do something with those rabbits.”
While a slew of Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam gags ran through my head, I couldn’t think of one single recipe. We were forbade cookbooks in the kitchen, as we had to rely on our own skills and creativity.
In a large, wide braising pan, I threw in a couple chopped onions, some green pepper, black peppercorns, bay leaf, juniper berries, cardomom, and half a smuggled can of beer. I quartered the rabbit and let it all braise and simmer, covered with foil, for a couple hours. The end result was delicious, meat just falling off the bone, tender as anything with a rich and savory sauce.
Rabbit is very lean and flavorful and wonderfully versatile in the kitchen. If only they weren’t so darn cute!
Rabbit was a fairly common Sunday dinner when my father was a boy, and is slowly gaining new popularity amongst food bloggers and fans of inspired culinaria.
Rabbit has a very subtle flavor, similar to chicken, but it also serves as a wonderful canvas to infuse and create flavors. I learned a very old French recipe for Lapin à la Vanille – rabbit with vanilla – which sounds odd, but actually brings out a delectable smoky sweetness in the meat.
Since we’re featuring some brilliant Sicilian wines in the shop right now, here is a recipe for Rabbit Cacciatore – and yes, you can use chicken.
Rabbit Cacciatore/ Sicilian Braised Rabbit
1 whole rabbit, quartered
1 of each; red, yellow, and green peppers, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
4-5 cloves of garlic, diced
1 large can, chopped tomatoes (or 4-5 good-sized fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped)
2 cups chicken stock (or rabbit stock if you’re a pro)
1/2 cup dry red wine
oregano
salt & pepper
flour
Season rabbit with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Heat olive oil in a thick-bottomed pan and brown rabbit pieces evenly. Remove rabbit from pan and add onions and peppers. Cook peppers and onions until soft, return rabbit back to the pan and add garlic, tomatoes, wine, and stock. Bring to a boil for a couple minutes and then bring to a slow simmer for about an hour, covered, over low heat.
Add oregano or other fresh Italian herbs and serve with hot pasta and a bottle of Isola D’Oro Syrah or the lovely Rapitala Nero D’Avola – both on sale now for $9.99 a bottle.