Rabbit with Chives
55 min
It's quite difficult to buy rabbit these days but this recipe has always been a favourite dinner party and feed-the-family recipe. This recipe can be adapted for chicken joints, using tarragon instead of chives and adding it with the stock. A small amaout of tarragon can be added at the end but take care as the flavour must not be too strong or it will spoil the dish.
4 people made this
Ingredients
Serves: 4
- 1 rabbit, jointed OR
- 1.3kg (3 lb) rabbit joints
- seasoned flour to coat
- 55g (2 oz) butter
- 1 liqueur glass Calvados or Cognac (optional)
- 16 button onions
- 150ml (1/4 pint) veal or chicken stock
- 175ml (6 fl oz) single cream
- salt and black pepper to taste
- cayenne pepper to taste
- 1 inch-thick bunch of chives, washed and chopped
Method
Prep:15min ›
Cook:40min ›
Ready in:55min
- Cut hind legs of rabbit into two joints. Turn all pieces in seasoned flour.
- In a large, heavy pan, fry the rabbit to a golden brown in the butter.
- Warm the Calvados in a ladle, ignite it and pour into the pan with the rabbit (see footnote). Turn the pieces in the flames.
- Add the onions, giving them a few minutes to colour slightly in the pan juices.
- Stir in the stock, cover the pan and simmer for about 40 minutes until cooked.
- Remove meat and onions and keep warm.
- Boil the pan juices down a little, then pour in the cream. After a few minutes (and if you are lucky) the pan juices will thicken.
- Add salt, pepper and then the cayenne and chives.
- Boil again and pour over the rabbit and onions.
Tip
NB AND THIS IS IMPORTANT - If you have a cooker hood with a fan turn it off before igniting the Cognac. The first time I did this I didn't and caught my cooker hood on fire. It was interesting watching the fan draw the flames up into the hood!!
