Mississippi Roast Rabbit Recipes

SIMPLE ROASTED RABBIT

Steps:

• Defrost and cut the rabbit.
• You will need six parts for roasting: 2 hind legs, 2 front legs, and the backstrap (loin) cut into 2 pieces (Note 2).
• Place the rabbit on a large cutting board lying on its back and open it up. Cut the belly flaps. Go under the armpit and cut the front legs with the whole shoulder.
• Grab the back legs with your hands and break that part open. Find where the tailbone is and cut along there.
• Cut the backbone and the ribs. Find the last rib with your fingers and cut right along that last rib. Repeat on the other side. The whole cut will be like a V. Grab the piece with your hands and break it apart so that you can see the joint between the bones and cut right there.
• Divide the backstrap or the loin in the middle. Find where the vertebra is and cut right there. Press with the knife or use a cleaver.
• Place the pieces in a roasting tin.
• In a small bowl mix olive oil, white wine, 4 grated garlic cloves, 2-3 sprigs chopped rosemary, salt, and pepper. Pour over the meat and turn the meat a few times in the marinade to coat it all over. Cover with plastic wrap/cling film and marinate for at least one hour, preferably 3-4. Remove from the fridge about 30 minutes before cooking.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Add 3-4 whole garlic cloves and the remaining rosemary sprigs to the roasting pan. Pour in the water.
• Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes, flipping the meat pieces about every 10 minutes. If you'd like the meat to get more color, turn on the grill during the last 5 minutes of the cooking time.
• The front legs and back strap pieces are smaller than the hind legs. I usually remove them after 30 minutes already, but I always check to see if the internal temperature is right, it should be 71 degrees Celsius/ 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Checking with a thermometer is the best way to ensure that the rabbit is safe to eat but not overcooked. If you overcook it, it will become dry.

SLOW ROASTED RABBIT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Season the rabbit with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the rabbit pieces and brown on all sides. Place in a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, onion, ketchup, garlic, paprika, Worcestershire sauce and water; pour over the rabbit.
• Bake uncovered for 90 minutes in the preheated oven, basting frequently. Meat should be very tender when done.

MISSISSIPPI ROAST RABBIT

Steps:

• clean and cut up a 3 lb. or larger rabbit. (optional: Brown pieces in 2 tablespoons any oil until browned but not fully cooked, approx. 5 minuted per side) Place rabbit pieces not overlapping into the bottom of a 6 quart crockpot that you sprayed with cooking spray or greased.
• Sprinkle the dry Ranch dressing, evenly, over all the rabbit pieces. Now sprinkle the dry Au jus gravy packet evenly over the ranch dressing.
• Cut the firm butter into 8 pats and place each pat atop 1 piece of rabbit. Next add 1 pepperoncini (more if desired) on top of each piece of rabbit, approximately 8 peppers. Pour some of the pepperoncini juice from the jar down the side so as not to wet the dry ingredients. 1/4th to 1/3 cup. You don't need any other liquid.
• Place lid on crockpot and cook on high, 6-8 hours. I always check my 6 quart rival crock at 6 hours to see if its done, and if it is, turn to low or warm until serving time.
• when serving, the Mississippi Roast Rabbit can be transferred to a serving tray or left to be scooped from the crock which is my preferred method. I have made this with 2 rabbits cut up, in my roaster at 225 degrees for 8 hours. The ingredients were the same, just spread thinner over 16 pieces.

ROAST RABBIT

Steps:

• Sprinkle rabbit with salt and pepper on the inside.
• Fill with stuffing, fasten opening securely and spread with fat.
• Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Roast in an uncovered pan at 350F for 1 1/2 hours or until tender.

WHOLE ROASTED RABBIT WITH GARLIC, ROSEMARY AND CORIANDER

Steps:

• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Spread rabbit out as flat as possible and place it on prepared pan.
• Season both sides with salt and pepper.
• Combine oil, garlic, rosemary, coriander, peppercorns and chili powder in a small bowl.
• Rub mixture over both sides of rabbit.
• Cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 475°F.
• Uncover rabbit.
• Roast until tender and cooked through, 30-35 minutes.