Rabbit for Easter?
I have cooked rabbit a few times lately – there seems to be plenty of it about. They are breeding like rabbits seems a very appropriate term, given the excellent breeding conditions for them in most of Australia – good rainfall and abundant vegetation of good nutritional value.
Where possible I buy wild rabbit. I like to think that helping to reduce the rabbit population is a good thing for the environment – wild rabbits have contributed to the extinction of many plant species and by their selective grazing they deplete the high-quality feed for some native species and livestock. The loss of vegetation also contributes to soil erosion.
I found a version of this recipe in Pino Correnti’s Il Libro D’oro della Cucina e dei Vini di Sicilia. As is often the case in Sicilian recipes, there is very little detail about the method of cooking and there are no quantities given, but the following combination works for me. The recipe is from Licodia Eubea, a small town in the province of Catania. It is close to Vizzini and not far from Caltagerone – all are north of Ragusa.
In this recipe the rabbit is marinated in red wine before cooking. If I am cooking a wild rabbit I marinate it overnight, if it is a farmed rabbit 3 hours are plenty.
I have cooked this rabbit several times and each time I have added more personal touches – whole mushrooms or whole onions, more spices. On one occasion I presented it with fregola – this is the Sardinian version of couscous that is common in Southern Sardinia around Cagliari. It is cooked like pasta in boiling, salted water for about 10 minutes and drained. (I am not sure that the Sicilians would approve, or the Sardinians for that matter.)
I use one rabbit to feed four people (usually weighs just below 1 kilo).
INGREDIENTS
rabbit,1
red wine, 1½ cups
cloves, 6-8
bay leaves, 4-6
garlic, 2 cloves, each cut into halves
cinnamon sticks, 1-2
extra virgin olive oil, ¾ cup
salt and pepper to taste
tomato paste, 2 tablespoons, dissolved in a little water
rosemary sprigs, fresh 3-4
mint, fresh, 6-8 leaves
onions, whole,1-2 per person
Clean the rabbit and cut it into manageable sections at the joints.
Add the rest of the extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan and sauté the pieces until golden. Remove them and set aside.
This sounds wonderful. I have never prepared rabbit. My Sicilian grandfather used to prepare a rabbit in vinegar and capers. My only issue with rabbit is that every time I have eaten it I struggle with many little bones.
I want to know the name of the dish in Sicilian.
If you would like to know the name of this dish in Sicilian it is Cunigghiu a la Licudiana