I have made this recipe for White Wine Braised Rabbit with Mustard two or three times in the last little while. I am so pleasantly surprised each time, it is so delicious and not surprisingly, a classic French Bistro favorite.
Tip : You can easily substitute chicken for the rabbit and full fat sour cream for the créme fraîche.
Ingredients
- 2 legs of rabbit
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp lard or vegetable oil
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 large yellow onion, diced
Sauce
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 6 whole sage leaves
- 1 whole bay leaf
- 2 tsp capers
- 1/2 cup crème frîache
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard or grainy mustard
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh chives or fresh parsley
Side Dish
- pappardelle or fettuccine pasta
Instructions
Gather all ingredients before starting the recipe
- Lay rabbit pieces on a sheet of parchment paper and season each piece generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Spread 1 cup flour on a separate sheet of parchment paper and dredge the seasoned rabbit pieces in the flour, shake off excess flour. Reserve about 1 tablespoon of flour to sprinkle over cooked onions.
- Heat a medium sized deep sided skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add 1 tbsp lard or vegetable oil. When the fat is hot, add the rabbit legs in one layer without crowding; work in batches if necessary. Adjust heat to keep them from browning too quickly. Sear for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side until nicely browned.
- Remove browned rabbit from pan and set aside. Add 1/2 large yellow onion, diced to the fat remaining in pan. Keep heat on medium high and cook onions until softened and lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 to 6 minutes. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Sprinkle onions with 1 tablespoon of flour remaining from dredging rabbit pieces and stir until well incorporated, then cook for a minute or so, until mixture starts to smell toasty.
- Add 1/2 cup dry white wine and 1 cup chicken stock, stir and bring to a simmer. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
- Return browned rabbit pieces to the sauce. Add 2 sprigs thyme and 6 whole sage leaves. Cover pan, reduce heat to medium low and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, or until meat is fork tender.
- Using tongs, remove rabbit pieces from sauce, set aside, and keep warm. Increase heat under saucepan to medium and bring contents to a simmer. Whisk in 1/2 cup crème frîache, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard or grainy mustard, 2 tsp capers and cook until somewhat thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste sauce and adjust.
- Using a fork, shred the meat from the bones, discarding the bones. Return shredded rabbit to the pan and stir to combine with the sauce.
- Cook pappardelle or fettuccine pasta according to package direction and when cooked, transfer cooked pasta directly from the cooking water to the sauce and stir to combine.
- Sprinkle with 1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh chives or fresh parsley and serve.
