Welcome to the summary page for FabulousFusionFood's Cook's Guide entry for Rabbit along with all the Rabbit containing recipes presented on this site, with 64 recipes in total.

This is a continuation of an entire series of pages that will, I hope, allow my visitors to better navigate this site. As well as displaying recipes by name, country and region of origin I am now planning a whole series of pages where recipes can be located by meal type and main ingredient. This page gives a listing of all the Rabbit recipes added to this site.

These recipes, all contain Rabbit as a major wild food ingredient.

Rabbits can be either farmed or wild. Wild rabbits are typically shot and have a much gamier flavour than farmed rabbits and should be cooked as for game. Farmed rabbits have a pale meat and are much less flavoursome than their wild equivalents, however, they do tend to be much younger and can be used in a wider range of dishes.

Typically, rabbits bred for the table will weigh about 1.4kg but the larger Ostend rabbit can weight up to 2.7kg. If bought from your local butcher, then the rabbit will typically have been prepared already and may well have its head removed.

If you have the choice, then rabbits make best eating between 3 and 3 1/2 months old when they are plump and have plenty of flavoursome fat on the carcass. If, however, you have an un-prepared rabbit (such as if you buy wild-shot rabbits) then they should be prepared by being paunched and then hung with their skins still on. To paunch a rabbit use a sharp knife to cut the entire length of the stomach. Slide out the entrails and discard all but the liver (ensure you remove the piece of intestine near the tail). Wipe the body cavity with a cloth or kitchen paper then hang in a cool, well-ventilated, spot for 4 days.

When properly hung you will need to skin the rabbit. Cut off the feet at the first joint then remove the ears. Loosen the skin from the flesh along the slit you made to paunch the rabbit then, working towards the hind legs, gently strip off the skin, pulling it inside out. Turn the rabbit over and remove the remainder of the skin, freeing the front legs and then the head. When the skin has been removed use a sharp knife to carefully remove the eyes.

When the skin has been removed clean the rabbit. Remove the kidneys and the fat surrounding them. Break the thin skin of the diaphragm then lift out the heart and lungs. Discard the heart and keep only the heart, kidneys and liver (ensure this is completely free of gall). Wash the rabbit carcass thoroughly both inside and out with salt water then soak for at least 30 minutes in tepid, salted, water (this will make the flesh paler).

Many recipes call for the rabbit to be jointed and this can be done by the following procedure. Remove the fore-legs whole then remove the back legs and chop into three or four pieces. Chop the back (saddle) of the animal into four or five pieces, trimming off any loose flaps of skin. If you like the head, split in half and cook with the rabbit, otherwise reserve this to make a stock or gravy.

Old or wild rabbit should always to cooked in a stew but young, farmed, rabbits can be roasted, pan-fried, grilled or barbecued. You can also substitute veal for rabbit meat in most recipes calling for rabbits.

For information about roasting rabbit (and many other meats) to perfection, see this site's Guide to Roasting page.