Braised Rabbit With Wild Mushrooms Recipes

RED WINE-BRAISED RABBIT WITH WILD MUSHROOMS RECIPE

Steps:

• Place the rabbit in a shallow ceramic or other non-reactive dishes.
• In a small bowl, combine all the marinade ingredients.
• Pour the marinade over the rabbit, turning to coat, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for 6 to 24 hours.
• Remove the rabbit from the marinade and set aside.
• Strain the marinade into a bowl, reserving the vegetables; set the liquid and vegetables aside.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Pat the rabbit pieces dry and season them with salt and pepper.
• In a deep heavy ovenproof skillet or a Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
• Add the rabbit pieces, in batches, turning once until they are golden brown for about 10 to 12 minutes.
• Transfer the rabbit to a rack set over a baking sheet.
• Tie together thyme, parsley, look top, and bay leaves to make a bouquet garni and set aside.
• Add the carrots, garlic, and reserved vegetables from the marinade to the skillet and cook over medium heat until softened for about 10 minutes.
• Add the dried mushrooms and their liquid, the wine and port, and the reserved liquid from the marinade.
• Bring to a simmer and skim off any foam.
• Add the broth, bouquet garni, and the rabbit and bring back to a simmer.
• Cover tightly with the lid or aluminum foil and place in the oven.
• Cook for 15 minutes.
• Remove the loin pieces and set aside.
• Continue to braise the remaining rabbit for 30 to 40 minutes, or until tender.
• Transfer the rabbit pieces to a rack set over a platter.
• Place the skillet half on and half of a burner and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil to reduce by half, skimming frequently.
• Then strain the liquid into a saucepan, reserving the vegetables.
• Discard the bouquet garni and puree the vegetables through a food mill.
• Add the pureed vegetables to the skillet, bring to a simmer, and reduce until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon.
• Adjust the seasoning.
• Meanwhile, in a small sauté pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
• Add the fresh mushrooms and sauté until some of their juices are released but they are still firm for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Remove from the heat.
• Just before serving, re-warm the rabbit in the sauce.
• Place a helping of spoonbread in the center of each plate and surround it with the rabbit and mushrooms.
• Spoon the sauce over the rabbit and garnish with the chopped herbs.

BRAISED RABBIT WITH PORCINI AND POLENTA

Steps:

• Soak the mushrooms in warm water for a half-hour, then squeeze them dry, discarding all but two tablespoons of the liquid. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat; saute the onion, prosciutto and mushrooms until the onion is lightly browned. Add the rabbit and brown on all sides.
• Add the wine, thyme, salt and pepper and cook covered over medium heat for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, dice the tomatoes and add them to the rabbit. Lower the heat and cook, uncovered for another 30 minutes or until the sauce has thickened somewhat.
• In the meantime, make the polenta. Fill a large pot with three quarts of salted water, add the polenta in a steady stream and cook over medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon until the spoon stands by itself in the center and the polenta pulls away from the sides of the pot. Serve the polenta in large bowls, topped with the rabbit.

BRAISED RABBIT

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, cook rabbit in oil until lightly browned; remove and keep warm. In the same skillet, saute onion until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the broth, thyme, pepper and bay leaf. , Return rabbit to pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until meat is tender and a thermometer reads 160°., Remove rabbit to a serving platter. Discard bay leaf. Combine the flour, lemon juice and water until smooth; stir into pan juice. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with rabbit.

ITALIAN-STYLE BRAISED RABBIT WITH ROSEMARY AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Cut the rabbit into 9 pieces (or ask your butcher to) as follows: with a sharp cleaver, cut the saddle (center portion) into 3 pieces, leaving the kidneys attached. Cut the front portion (front legs) in half through the backbone. Chop each hind leg into 2 pieces. Reserve the liver and heart to sauté as a snack.
• Heat .25 inch of olive oil in a Dutch oven or deep, wide heavy skillet over medium heat. Season the rabbit pieces with salt and pepper, then dust lightly with flour. Lightly brown the rabbit for about 3 minutes on both sides, working in batches. Drain on kitchen towels, then transfer to a baking dish in one layer. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Pour off the used oil, wipe out the pan and add 2 tablespoons fresh oil. Heat to medium-high, add the onions and cook till soft, about 5 minutes. Add the leek, garlic, rosemary and mushrooms. Season generously with salt and pepper, and add red pepper flakes to taste. Cook for 2 minutes more, stirring.
• Add the chopped tomatoes and wine, and let the mixture reduce for 1 minute. Add the broth, bring to a simmer, taste and adjust seasonings.
• Ladle the mixture evenly over the rabbit. Cover the dish, and bake for 1 hour. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

WHITE WINE-BRAISED RABBIT WITH MUSTARD

Steps:

• Lay rabbit pieces on a baking sheet and season each piece generously with salt and pepper. (If you are using a pepper mill, adjust it for coarse grind.)
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Put a deep, heavy-bottomed, oven-safe saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add lard or oil.
• Put 1 cup flour on a wide plate. Dip seasoned rabbit pieces in flour and dust off excess. Gently set them in the hot oil in one layer without crowding; work in batches if necessary. Adjust heat to keep them from browning too quickly. Cook for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side until nicely browned.
• Remove browned rabbit from pan and set aside. Add diced onion to fat remaining in pan. Keep heat brisk and cook onions until softened and lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 to 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Sprinkle onions with 2 tablespoons flour and stir until well incorporated, then cook for a minute or so, until mixture starts to smell toasty. Add wine and 1 cup broth, whisking as the sauce thickens. Whisk in remaining broth and the whole-grain mustard and bring to a simmer. Taste for salt and adjust.
• Return browned rabbit pieces to the sauce. Add thyme and sage. Cover pot and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until meat is fork tender. (Alternatively, simmer over low heat, covered, on the stove top, for about the same amount of time.)
• Using tongs, remove rabbit pieces from sauce, set aside, and keep warm. Put saucepan over medium heat and bring contents to a simmer. Whisk in crème fraîche, Dijon mustard and capers and simmer until somewhat thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste sauce and adjust.
• Transfer rabbit to a warmed serving bowl and ladle the sauce over. Sprinkle generously with chives and a little freshly ground pepper. Accompany with noodles if desired.