Rabbit Greek Food

RABBIT STIFADO

Steps:

• Rinse the rabbit pieces and place them in a mixing bowl together with the bay leaves and vinegar; mix well and leave to marinate for at least 2 hours, or overnight; remove the rabbit from the marinade and pat dry with kitchen paper.
• Heat half of the olive oil in a large saucepan until hot, add the rabbit and fry the pieces until quite brown on all sides; add the tomato paste, bay leaves (left over from the marinade), sugar, garlic, spices, wine and the hot water.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Bring to the boil mixing well then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan; add the onions and sauté gently for 15 minutes stirring occasionally, until golden all over; after the rabbit has been cooking for 1 hour, add the onions and oil from the frying pan to the saucepan; combine, then re-cover and simmer for a further 15 minutes; fish out the cinnamon stick, allspice berries and rosemary sprig.
• Note: This can be served with pasta, noodles, rice or oven-roasted potatoes, but my personal favourite is homemade french-fries, which taste delicious dunked in the spicy sauce.

RABBIT GREEK RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Fry rabbit pieces in hot oil until evenly browned. Season with bay leaves, salt, allspice berries, oregano, and lemon juice to the saucepan. Pour white wine over the rabbit. Bring the mixture to a simmer; cook 4 to 5 minutes. Add enough water to the saucepan to cover rabbit completely.
• Bring the liquid to a simmer; cook until rabbit is cooked through and the water is evaporated, about 40 minutes.

GREEK RABBIT STEW. KOUNELI STIFADO

Steps:

• Cut up the rabbits and cut into serving pieces. Be sure to include little bits, like the belly flaps, the front legs, the kidneys and such; they become yummy surprises in the finished stew. Salt the rabbit pieces well and set aside for 30 minutes.
• Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a frying pan and brown the rabbit well. As each piece browns, move it to a brazier or Dutch oven or other heavy, lidded pot. When the rabbit is browned, sauté the onions for 4 to 5 minutes over medium-high heat, until they begin to brown. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute. Sprinkle with salt. Do not let the garlic burn.
• Turn the contents of the frying pan into the brazier or a Dutch oven, then arrange the bay leaves, oregano, allspice berries and cinnamon stick over them.
• In the pan you browned the rabbit and the onions, add the wine, sweet wine, vinegar, stock, tomato paste and grated tomatoes - cut tomatoes in half and run them through your coarsest grater to leave the skins out of your pot. Cook this down over high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, then pour over everything in the pot.
• Cover the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook slowly for 1 hour, then check. It may need up to another hour. You want the rabbit to be just about falling off the bone. You can pull the rabbit meat off the bone, as I do, or just let your guests do that. Grind some black pepper and drizzle some really good olive oil over everything right when you serve.

LAGOSTIFADO - RABBIT STEW

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375F/180C.
• Heat 4 to 6 tablespoons of olive oil, or more if needed, in a large, wide pot or Dutch oven over medium flame and add the rabbit, in batches if necessary. Brown on one side then turn with kitchen tongs to brown on the other side. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the rabbit with kitchen tongs to a tray or platter lined with paper towels.
• Add the onions to the pot and cook until wilted, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic. Add the dry and sweet wines and simmer until the liquid is reduced by a third. Add the chopped fresh and canned tomatoes and chicken stock. Add the rabbit pieces to the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Add all the herbs and spices.
• Cover the pot and transfer the rabbit to the oven. Bake for about 35 minutes.
• While the rabbit bakes, heat the butter in a large, wide skillet and brown the stewing onions on all sides over low heat, about 15 to 20 minutes. About halfway through cooking them, sprinkle with the sugar and add half a cup of water. Shake the pan back and forth to disperse it evenly. The onions should cook long enough to caramelize without losing their shape or falling apart.
• About halfway through baking the rabbit, stir in the tomato paste to help thicken up the pan juices. Add the caramelized onions to the rabbit after it's baked for 35 minutes or so and continue baking another half hour, or until very tender and falling off the bone. Remove, cool slightly and serve over rice or noodles.

GREEK RABBIT STEW RECIPE (IN RED WINE SAUCE)

Steps:

• Bring a deep pot over high heat and when it's hot, add the olive oil and the rabbit in one layer (if it doesn't fit in one layer, you will do it in batches). Let the meat brown well from one side, then flip it to brown from the other.
• Remove the meat from the pan, add the onion, the allspice, the bay leaves, and some freshly grated black pepper. Stir until the onion is translucent, then return the meat to the pot and add the wine and the pureed tomatoes. When the pot starts to boil again reduce heat to a slow simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, add the potatoes and the salt. Stir gently and shake the pan to distribute the ingredients evenly. Add enough boiling water (if needed) to almost cover the food, but not completely. Cook for about 1 hour or until the meat and the potatoes are fork tender.

HUNTER'S RABBIT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• To a large warmed skillet over medium heat, add 1/4 cup of olive oil. Sprinkle the rabbit with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the rabbit to the hot oil and brown on both sides. Remove the rabbit to a medium-size casserole dish.
• In that same skillet, over medium heat, add more olive oil. Add the mushrooms and shallots and saute for about 2 minutes. Transfer the mushroom mixture to the casserole. Sprinkle the flour, thyme, parsley and the bay leaf over the rabbit and stir in the tomato sauce, wine, and the beef broth. You may add a pinch more of salt and pepper if you wish. Cover with foil and put in the oven to bake until the rabbit is tender, stirring every hour, about 2 to 3 hours. Rabbit meat should pull off easily from the bone with a fork. Remove from the oven and serve.