Rabbit Fricassée
Local, pastured rabbit in a sauce of game stock, shallots, mushrooms, thyme and fresh cream..
Break down a fresh rabbit by removing and splitting the leg quarters and removing the saddle, backbone and ribs and splitting the loin into 2 boneless halves. Be sure to examine the liver- it should look and smell perfectly fresh and clean. Clean kidneys and reserve with liver for another use (if you like liver, try frying rabbit liver & kidneys in butter and seasoning with plenty of salt and pepper- the taste is absolutely revelatory).
Lay the loins out on a cutting board. Use a piece of wax paper and the flat side of a meat mallet to pound the loin into an even thickness. Spread the loins with raw honey (heather, Tupelo or Guajillo work nicely) and season with fresh thyme, a little salt and black pepper.
Roll the loin up in lean, uncured bacon and secure with toothpicks about 1 1/2 inches apart. Cut between the toothpicks to form little loin fillets. Refrigerate.
Make a stock of the bones and trimmings, cold filtered water, celery, onions, carrots and garlic. Bring to a boil, skim the scum, reduce heat and simmer 3-4 hours.
Poach the leg quarters in the stock until tender, about 1 hour. Remove from stock and set aside.
Sauté the loin pieces in a little olive oil with minced shallots, mushrooms and garlic until browned, about 6 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
Deglaze the pan with white vermouth and reduce.
Add stock and reduce.
Add fresh cream, thyme and homemade coarse mustard. Add reserved loin and leg pieces and gently simmer until sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning with sea salt and black pepper and serve.
This post is part of the Nourished Kitchen’s Clean Your Plate Recipe Challenge
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maybelles mom said,
June 15, 2009 at 8:51 pm
This looks great. Did you make your own bacon?
Ren said,
June 15, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Sadly, no. I live in a smallish apartment in a large city, and they won’t let us keep pigs (or rabbits) on the patio :-)
Fortunately, though, we have lots of local farmers who bring such things to market!
Thanks!
Tara said,
June 16, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Wow, this really looks delicious. I’m going to contact our rabbit farmer and let him know to up my order. Yum!
Ren said,
June 16, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Thanks, Tara! It was even better for lunch today :-)
Vote Now for the Best Honey Recipe! | The Nourished Kitchen said,
June 23, 2009 at 10:41 am
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Millie said,
June 23, 2009 at 5:48 pm
Oh Goodness. That looks wonderful. Very good use of honey.
Ren said,
June 23, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Thanks, Millie! The honey, thyme and mustard went really well together, I thought.
sustainableeats said,
June 24, 2009 at 12:47 am
YUM! This is making me want to keep rabbits now. I wish I had a good source for them!
Ren said,
June 24, 2009 at 7:24 am
Rabbits can be a little hard to find. What part of the country do you live in?
Soraya said,
June 24, 2009 at 9:25 am
I’m not the original poster but I would be interested to know where I could find rabbit in Madison, WI. We do have an amazing Farmer’s Market but I’m not sure I’ve ever seen rabbit meat for sale. This recipe is making me drool! Thanks for sharing! :)
Ren said,
June 24, 2009 at 9:39 am
You guys actually have one of the best markets in the country- you might try asking among the farmers, or you can try Prairie Hill Farms in Palmyra or Ninepatch in Hamburg, up near Wausau.
Hope that helps!
Thanks!
sustainableeats said,
June 24, 2009 at 9:53 am
I’m in Seattle and the only place I’ve found rabbit is frozen in a butcher’s shop for almost as much money as I spent birthing my first child. I’ve never seen them at a local farmer’s market and the butcher at Pike Place market carries non-local meat, which is off my list. We just got chickens this year and I have rabbits on the radar…
Ren said,
June 24, 2009 at 10:49 am
Sorry, I’m just not familiar enough with Seattle to have a suggestion for you. I’m surprised about Pike Place, though!
Cheers
Michaela said,
September 23, 2009 at 7:53 pm
This looks excellent. I’ve seen your 3(?) rabbit recipes & will be keeping an eye out for more. This past summer we began raising rabbits for meat & they’ll be ready for breeding within the next couple months.
Ren said,
September 24, 2009 at 7:49 am
Nice!