Rabbit fell out of favour in the UK perhaps because we began to consider rabbits as pets rather than produce. Recently though rabbit is becoming popular again and this warming stew is an old classic.
Celebrating Heritage British Food & Cooking
During World War two the British population was encouraged to grow their own to supplement rationing using the Dig for Victory campaign. Allotments became very popular because you could keep rabbits and chickens a welcome source of extra meat, as well as produce fresh vegetables.
Keeping Chickens and Rabbits
Most families who had space kept chickens and a large number kept rabbits. It was estimated that a breeding pair of rabbits could produce up to 45 lbs of meat from their offspring in a year.
First issued in 1941 when the food shortages of World War II made it essential for every scrap of kitchen waste to be used to feed the nation, Penguin Books published a handbook Keeping Poultry and Rabbits on Scraps by Claude Goodchild and Alan Thompson. It enabled the meagre wartime rations to be supplemented in thousands of homes by a regular supply of eggs and meat.
A Recipe From My Britain At War Collection
During WWII and for nearly 10 years afterwards, the UK population was subject to food rationing. To feed the family some very creative recipes were used to make the best of the available foodstuffs. Eggs and meat in particular were severely restricted.
Rationing finally ended in 1954 when the last item, meat was made freely available.
Because rabbit meat tends to dry out during the cooking process, braising it slowly in liquid in this way guarantees meat so tender it falls off the bone.
Rabbit Stew
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 2 tsp dried thyme or 2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 15 g/½oz butter
- 2-3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 large farmed rabbit or 2 young wild rabbits jointed into 8 pieces
- 6 rashers rindless smoked streaky bacon cut into 2cm/¾in squares
- 2 onions chopped
- 500 ml/17fl oz dry cider
- 300 ml/10fl oz chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 350 g/12oz chantenay carrots peeled
- 150 g/5oz frozen peas
Conversions
Instructions
- Place the flour, thyme and a good pinch of salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper in a large freezer bag. Put the rabbit portions into the bag, a few at a time, and shake well until evenly coated in the seasoned flour. Transfer to a plate.
- Melt the butter with one tablespoon of the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the rabbit, a few pieces at a time, until golden-brown all over. Put all the front and rear leg portions into a flameproof casserole dish.
- Transfer the saddle pieces to a plate, cover loosely and set aside (these will need less cooking time, so can be added later on). Preheat the oven to 170C/340F/Gas 3½.
- Add a little more oil to the pan and cook the bacon until the fat is browned and beginning to crisp. Add the bacon to the casserole dish.
- Add a dash more oil to the frying pan and fry the onion for 5-7 minutes, or until lightly browned and beginning to soften. Add the onions to the casserole, sprinkle with any flour remaining in the freezer bag and stir until well combined.
- Pour half of the cider into the frying pan and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to lift any sediment from the bottom. Simmer for a few seconds then pour into the casserole. Add the rest of the cider and the stock. Stir the bay leaves into the casserole, cover with a lid and cook in the centre of the oven for 45 minutes.
- Remove the casserole from the oven, add the reserved saddle pieces and carrots, turn all the rabbit portions, ensuring that as much of the meat is covered by liquid as possible. (Not all the meat will be covered.) Return to the oven for a further 1-2 hours.
- Take the casserole out of the oven after one hour and check the rabbit – the meat should be starting to fall off the bone when the rabbit is ready. Poke the leg portions and the saddle pieces with a knife and if it doesn’t slide in easily, return the casserole to the oven. Check again for tenderness and turn the rabbit portions every 30 minutes or so.
- When the rabbit is tender, skim off any fat that may have risen to the top of the casserole with a large spoon. Carefully transfer the casserole to the hob. Bring to a fast simmer and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until the liquid reduces to a slightly thickened, gravy-like consistency. Stir in the frozen peas and simmer for a further three minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve.
You may also like one of my other favourite recipes …
Grandads Cookbook may reference or include sections of text and images reproduced courtesy of:
- The Hairy Bikers
- Wikipedia