The elite white meat

Rabbit makes presence felt at dinner table

By SYLVIA RECTOR
Knight Ridder Newspapers

When Chicago chef Don Yamauchi took over the kitchen at Tribute in Farmington Hills, Mich., one of the first things he planned to do was eliminate the rabbit dish, figuring it wasn’t very popular. But he was surprised to see that it was one of the restaurant’s best- sellers.

Widely accepted as a food in Europe, rabbit is beginning to show up at more fine-dining restaurants as top chefs seek out interesting, high-quality ingredients to appeal to their increasingly sophisticated, more adventurous diners.

Frozen rabbit often is the only kind available to chefs, Yamauchi says. But Tribute buys naturally raised rabbits, “and we only get it fresh, which I love,” he says.

Nutritionally, rabbit and chicken meats are similar: Farm-raised rabbit is a bit higher in fat and calories than chicken but a little lower in cholesterol, with about the same amount of protein. And like chicken breast, chefs say, it can become dry and overdone if it’s improperly prepared.

Most chefs recommend braising, in which bone-in meat is first browned on the stove top in hot fat and then cooked slowly, covered, over low heat in a small amount of flavorful liquid. The long, slow, simmering in a covered pot is best done in the oven. Braising yields fork-tender meat that has absorbed the flavors of its cooking liquid.

Because rabbit is mild and neutral, it works well in a wide variety of flavor profiles.

Braised rabbit with vegetables and coconut milk

Ritz-Carlton Dearborn chef de cuisine Regan Reik simmers rabbit legs with root vegetables and fennel in white wine, chicken stock and coconut milk to create a Thai-inspired one-pot dish with delicate, subtle flavors and a lovely ivory-colored sauce.

6 rabbit legs, trimmed
Salt and black pepper
1cup all-purpose flour for dredging
Olive oil for frying
1 medium onion, peeled, diced
3 medium carrots, peeled, sliced
1 fennel bulb, trimmed, cut into wedges
2 cups dry white wine
2 Idaho potatoes, scrubbed, cut into wedges
2 small bunches fresh basil
1 cup chicken broth
1-1/2 cups coconut milk
2 limes, juiced
Parsley for garnish

Season the rabbit legs with the salt and pepper and dredge them in flour, shaking off the excess.

Heat a stove-top and oven-safe casserole dish. Add the olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the rabbit legs and brown on all sides. Remove and set them aside.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

Add a little more oil to the casserole and add the onions, carrots and fennel and season with salt and pepper. Cook the vegetables, stirring often, until they are tender and slightly browned.

Place the rabbit on top of the vegetables and increase the heat to high.

Add the wine and reduce its volume by two-thirds.

Add the potatoes, basil, chicken broth, coconut milk and lime juice. Heat to a simmer, cover and place the casserole in the oven.

Cook for 1-1/2 hours or until the rabbit is very tender and the sauce has thickened. Remove from the oven, discard the basil and set the dish aside.

To serve, place a rabbit leg on a warm plate, top with the vegetables and the sauce. Garnish with parsley and serve with a crisp glass of Chardonnay. Serves six.

Braised rabbit in red wine

Five Lakes Grill chef Brian Polcyn simmers rabbit with bacon, red wine, herbs and aromatics to produce a dish with deeply satisfying flavors and a rich brown sauce. Polcyn suggests serving it with fresh pasta or an earthy mushroom risotto.

Marinade:
1 cup red wine
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled, chopped
4 shallots, peeled, chopped

Rabbit:
3 strips bacon, cut up
1 whole rabbit (about 3 to 4 pounds)
Salt and pepper to taste
Flour for dusting
1 medium onion, peeled, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 bunch fresh thyme
8 black peppercorns
1 tomato, washed, chopped
2 cups rich chicken stock
Arrowroot or cornstarch for thickening
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

In a nonreactive dish or plastic sealable bag, combine all the marinade ingredients and set aside. Cut the rabbit legs and thighs off (front and back). Cut the loin section in half. Place all the rabbit pieces in the marinade, cover or seal bag and marinate for 2 to 3 days.

When ready to braise, preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

In a heavy skillet over medium heat, render the fat from the bacon pieces. Remove the bacon pieces and set aside. Remove the rabbit from the marinade (reserve marinade) and dry off the pieces with paper towel. Season the pieces with salt and pepper and dust in flour, shaking off the excess. Brown the rabbit pieces evenly in the bacon fat. Remove and place in a casserole dish with a tight fitting lid. Add the reserved bacon pieces back to the rabbit.

To the same skillet, add the onion, bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns and tomatoes. Allow the onions to brown lightly. Add the reserved marinade and chicken stock to the skillet and deglaze scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over the rabbit pieces. Cover the dish and place in the oven for about one hour or until the pieces are tender.

When rabbit is tender, remove the pieces and strain the cooking liquid into a saucepan. Set the rabbit aside to cool. Bring to a boil and reduce to thicken and intensify the flavor. If the liquid is too thin, thicken it with a mixture of arrowroot or cornstarch mixed water. Whisk in the mixture a little at a time to thicken. Whisk in the butter pieces.

When rabbit is cool enough to handle, pick the meat off the bones and gently reheat in the sauce and serve over fresh pasta or risotto. Serves four.