Rabbit ragout – ByeByeBunny

Ingredients for 8 servings:

• 1 large rabbit, ready to cook (slaughter weight >6 kg) or two small ones – preferably from a local breeder
• 3 bunch of soup vegetables, if you prefer less vegetables you can use two.
• 4 m.-sized onion(s)
• 8 peppercorns
• 3 bay leaves
• some salt
• 4 juniper berries
• 3 allspice berries
• 80 g butter
• 2 tbsp, heaped flour
• 2 bottles of Cremefine or 2 cups of cream
• 1 small can of peas
• 1 small jar of asparagus tips
• 1 large can of mushrooms (mini heads)
• salt and pepper
• some sage, dried
• some nutmeg
• possibly capers
• 0.1 g saffron powder, not necessary, but gives a great note.
• possibly curry
• 1 shot of dry white wine

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Cooking/baking time approx. 3 hours 30 minutes; Total time approx. 4 hours 30 minutes

A lot of work, but it’s worth it. Something different for once.

Rinse the rabbit thoroughly and roughly chop it up. Place it in the pot. Leave the kidneys in, but remove the liver (if included). Remove the parsley from the soup vegetables and place them in water. Clean the soup vegetables and add them to the meat. (Tip: After cleaning, quarter the carrots lengthwise.) Peel and halve the onions and add them to the meat. Add the peppercorns, bay leaves, juniper berries, allspice berries, and salt. Cover everything well with water. Cover and bring to a boil. As soon as it starts to boil, set aside and simmer gently for about 3 hours. Then let cool slightly. Remove the meat and the vegetables that will be in the ragù (carrots, some celery, parsnips if desired). Strain the soup through a sieve into a storage pot and squeeze the vegetables well in the sieve. Chop the removed vegetables very finely. Cut the meat off the bones in small pieces. Remove the kidneys. I find them delicious, others don’t like them at all, so decide whether to add them to the ragout or not accordingly. The same goes for the tongue. Set the meat and vegetables aside. In a non-stick saucepan, sweat the flour in the butter over medium heat, stirring well, and then deglaze with the rabbit stock. Allow to thicken, adding stock until the desired consistency is almost reached. Stir vigorously with a whisk. Simmer gently, stirring frequently. Drain the canned mushrooms and peas in a sieve. Halve the asparagus tips and drain well. Then add everything to the sauce. Add the Cremefine and meat with the soup vegetables. Allow to simmer gently. Add the spices and season to taste. Tear the parsley into small pieces and add it along with the white wine just before serving. Tastes great with pasta, rice, or potatoes. The ragout freezes well. Tip: The liver tastes great when briefly fried.