Hassenpfeffer Pickled Rabbit Recipes

HASENFEFFER (SOUR RABBIT STEW)

Steps:

• In a large pot, combine the water, white sugar, whole cloves, onion, celery, lemon, cinnamon, ground cloves, salt, pickling spice and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn off and allow to cool. Place the rabbit pieces into the mixture to marinate. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread flour out onto a parchment or aluminum foil lined baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flour is a light brown color.
• Remove the rabbit from the marinade and pat dry. Strain the marinade, and discard the solids. Reserve the liquid for later.
• Heat the oil in a deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Coat the chicken with the toasted flour. Place into the hot oil, and cook until browned on both sides. Remove from the pan, and set aside. If there is oil left in the pan, sprinkle enough of the toasted flour over it to absorb the liquid.
• In a jar with a lid, mix 1/2 cup of the marinade with 1/4 cup of the remaining toasted flour. Close the lid, and shake vigorously until well blended with no lumps. Heat the pan with the rabbit drippings over low heat. Gradually stir in the marinade mixture, stirring constantly until slightly thickened.
• Return the rabbit pieces to the pan. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour, or until the meat is falling off of the bones. You may remove the bones prior to serving if desired.

HASENPFEFFER WITH SEMOLINA DUMPLINGS

Steps:

• Marinate the rabbit. Bring all the ingredients for the marinade to a boil, then let cool to room temperature. While the marinade is cooling, cut up a hare into serving pieces. Find a covered container (plastic, ceramic, glass) just about large enough to hold the cut-up hare and put the meat inside. Cover with the cooled marinade. If you have leftover marinade, put that into a different container. Put everything in the refrigerator and let it sit at least 8 hours, but 2 days is better.
• Remove the hare from the marinade and pat it dry. Save the marinade. Heat the butter in a large, heavy pot with a lid. Dredge the hare in the flour and brown well on all sides. Do this over medium to medium-high heat so the butter does not burn. Remove the hare pieces as they brown and set aside.
• As the hare is browning, preheat your oven to 325°F and strain the marinade into a bowl.
• Once you've browned the hare, add the onion and stir to coat with the butter. If there is not much butter left, add another tablespoon or so. Cook the onions over medium-high heat until they are soft and a little brown on the edges. Sprinkle salt over them as they cook.
• Return the hare to the pot and add the strained marinade. Bring to a simmer, cover and put into the oven. Cook until the meat wants to fall off the bones: This will take 2 to 4 hours for a wild hare, or between 90 minutes and 2 hours for a store-bought rabbit. To finish the hasenpfeffer, remove it from the oven and uncover the pot. Spoon off about a cup of the sauce and put it into a bowl. Add the sour cream to the bowl and mix to combine. Return the mixture to the pot and swirl it around to combine. Serve at once with the dumplings.
• Make the dumplings. Once the hasenpfeffer has cooked for an hour or so, make the dumpling dough. Heat the milk to the steaming point and add the butter and salt. Start stirring the milk with one hand while you sprinkle in the semolina with the other. Stir well until the semolina absorbs the milk and forms a stiff dough. Take the pot off the heat and let the dough cool. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil on the stove. once it boils, turn off the heat until the hare is done.
• When the hasenpfeffer is ready, turn the heat off the oven but leave everything inside. Mix the egg and nutmeg into the semolina dough. Let the dough stand while you bring your pot of salty water back to a boil, which won't take long because you preheated it. Get a bowl of water ready to wet your hands, so the dumpling dough doesn't stick to them.
• Roll the dough into balls. I like to make dumplings the size of a walnut. As you make them, drop each one into the boiling water. Do not crowd the pot. Once the dumplings start bobbing on the surface, let them cook another 2 to 5 minutes, depending on how soft you like them. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

BEST BRAISED RABBIT

Steps:

• Heat the roaster or casserole over moderate heat and cook the bacon, stirring and turning it frequently, until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Set the pan with bacon fat aside for a few moments.
• Cut the rabbit into serving pieces. Cut away and discard the belly meat.
• Add the salt, pepper, and flour to a brown paper bag. Add a few rabbit pieces to the bag and shake to coat with flour mixture; repeat with remaining rabbit pieces.
• Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• Heat the reserved bacon fat in the pan over high heat until it sputters.
• Brown the rabbit pieces on all sides, in batches; this should take about 10 minutes. Transfer them to a serving plate.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoon of fat and cook the onions in it until they are soft and translucent. Pour in the vinegar and chicken stock and add the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat, scraping up any browned bits clinging to the bottom and sides of the pan.
• Return the rabbit with juices to the roaster or casserole. Add the drained bacon. Cover the vessel tightly, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, or until the rabbits are tender but not falling apart.
• Serve the rabbit directly from the roaster or casserole, or arrange the pieces attractively on a heated platter.

HASENPFEFFER (RABBIT STEW)

Steps:

• Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain on paper towels and set aside. Sprinkle rabbit with salt and coat with 1/3 cup flour, shaking off excess. Brown rabbit in remaining bacon fat. Remove from skillet, along with all but 2 tablespoons of the fat, and reserve.
• Saute shallots and garlic in skillet for about 4 minutes, until tender. Stir in wine, 1 cup water and bouillon. Heat to boiling, then stir in jelly, peppercorns, bay leaf, and rosemary. Return rabbit and bacon to skillet. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer about 1 1/2 hours or until rabbit is tender.
• Remove bay leaf and discard. Place rabbit on a warm platter and keep warm while preparing gravy.
• To Make Gravy: Stir lemon juice into skillet with cooking liquid. Combine 3 tablespoons water with 2 tablespoons flour and mix together; stir mixture into skillet over low heat. Finally, stir in thyme. Pour gravy over stew and serve, or pour into a gravy boat and serve on the side.

HASENPFEFFER (GERMAN-STYLE WINE BRAISED RABBIT)

Steps:

• Prepare the MarinadeI; n a deep bowl combine the onion, garlic, bay leaves, cloves, and wine. Add the rabbit pieces making sure they are submerged. Cover with plastic wrap, placing a plate on top to keep the rabbit submerged. Refrigerate for at least one full day, two is better.
• Heat the oven to 325°F. Prepare the Hasenpfeffer: Remove the rabbit from the refrigerator and remove the rabbit pieces, scraping off any onion or garlic that is clinging to it. Pat the rabbit dry with paper towels (wet meat doesn't brown). Strain the solids from the wine by pouring through a sieve; saving the marinade and onions separately.
• In a large heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil and butter together until the butter has melted and become frothy. Salt and pepper the rabbit then add to the pot, in batches as necessary. Brown well. (Browning is important. Do not rush this step). Once all the rabbit is browned, lower the heat then add the solids from the marinade (onions and garlic). Cook, stirring frequently until the onions are soft. Stir in the flour and sauté for about 2 - 3 minutes.
• Stir in 1 cup of the marinade and cook until beginning to thicken. Add the rabbit, plus any accumulated juices to the pan, along with about 1 cup of chicken stock. Add marinade and chicken stock in equal portions to cover the rabbit. Cover the pot and place in the oven. Ignore for 1 1/2 hours.
• After 1 1/2 hours, remove the pot from the oven. Remove the rabbit from the pot. Put the rabbit on a platter and keep warm.
• Strain the sauce to remove all the solids. Bring the sauce to a simmer. If it is not thick enough, make a slurry of 2 teaspoons cornstarch to 1 tablespoon chicken stock. Stir and cook until thickened. Serve rabbit with gravy spooned over.

HASSENPFEFFER (PICKLED RABBIT)

Steps:

• Place cut up rabbit in a large bowl or crock and cover with marinade of equal parts water and vinegar, the onion, salt, pepper, cloves and bay leaves.
• Cover the bowl or crock and let marinade in a cool/cold place for two days.
• Remove rabbit pieces and dry each piece.
• Melt butter in a Dutch oven or heavy skillet and slowly brown rabbit, turning it often.
• Gradually add some of the marinade sauce, about 1/2 cup each time, and simmer with a lid on it until it is tender.
• Add sour cream just before serving.

HASENPFEFFER

Steps:

• Sprinkle the rabbit meat with salt. Coat with the 1/3 cup of flour, shaking off the excess. Fry the bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, then remove the bacon and drain on paper towels. Brown a few pieces of the rabbit in the hot bacon fat, and then remove the browned pieces. Repeat with remaining rabbit until done. Remove all but 2 tablespoons fat from the pan. Cook and stir the shallots and garlic in the hot fat in the Dutch oven until the shallots are tender - usually about 4 minutes. Stir in the wine, the 1 cup of water and the instant chicken bouillon, and heat to boiling. Stir in the jelly, peppercorns, bay leaf, rosemary and thyme. Return the rabbit meat and bacon to the Dutch oven. Heat again to boiling, then reduce heat. Cover and simmer until the rabbit is tender - usually about 1-1/2 hours. Remove the bay leaf and discard it. Place the rabbit on a warm platter, and keep it warm while preparing the gravy. Stir lemon juice into the liquid that remains in the Dutch oven. Shake the 3 tablespoons of water and the 2 tablespoons of flour in a covered jar. Stir the flour mixture into the drippings in the pan, and make a gravy which you'll use to cover the rabbit meat when served on a warm plate.