Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 2 (108 page)

Serve bubbling hot from casserole onto very hot plates.

(*)
AHEAD-OF-TIME NOTES
: Tripe may be cooked several days in advance of serving, and reheats perfectly.

RABBIT

Lapin

Rabbit, if you have never tried it, is very much like chicken in taste and texture, but the meat is firmer and therefore does very well in a stew. Most rabbit stews are called sautés in French, and the recipe you usually encounter is
sauté de lapin au vin blanc
, in which the pieces of rabbit are browned in the pan, seasoned, floured, and simmered in white wine with onions, mushrooms, and
lardons
of bacon. Rather than repeating this too-familiar version, we give a red wine stew.

BUYING RABBIT AND PREPARING IT FOR COOKING

In many parts of the country you can now buy an excellent quality of frozen young rabbit “fryers,” cut up and all ready for cooking as soon as you have defrosted the pieces. If fresh frying rabbit is available, have it cut so that the forelegs are disjointed from the body at the shoulder, the hind legs at the hip, and the rib section separated from the loin. Then separate the hind legs at the knee, to make 2 pieces; cut the loin (
rable
) and the rib sections in two crosswise, and if you wish, trim off with scissors the lower part of the ribs, which is mostly bone.

Cut up this way, you will have 10 pieces, the choicest of which are the second joints and the 2 pieces of loin; the 1 front legs are second best, and the rib sections have the least meat. (In Europe and in some parts of this country,
the head and neck also make part of the stew.) Use the liver and heart like chicken liver, or you may wish to add it to the stew.

Two and a half pounds of cut-up ready-to-cook rabbit will serve 4 to 5 people.

TO THAW FROZEN RABBIT

Let it defrost for 24 hours in the refrigerator, or defrost it in a wine marinade as suggested in the following recipe.

LAPIN AU SAUPIQUET

[Rabbit Marinated in Vinegar and Herbs, and Stewed in Red Wine]

This French recipe is very much like the German
hasenpfeffer,
in that both use a wine-vinegar marinade before the stew begins; this tenderizes the rabbit as well as giving it an excellent flavor. Serve the rabbit with parslied potatoes, buttered noodles, or steamed and buttered rice, and a simple green vegetable such as the
sautéed zucchini
, buttered broccoli, or green beans. A full red wine is definitely the type to choose—a Hermitage, Côtes-du-Rhône, or Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

For 4 to 5 people

1)
Marinating the rabbit—at least 24 hours

½ to ⅔ cup red wine vinegar (amount depending on strength)

½ tsp cracked peppercorns

3 Tb olive oil or cooking oil

½ cup sliced onions

2 large cloves of garlic, unpeeled, halved

4 juniper berries

½ tsp Oregano

1 imported bay leaf

12 tsp thyme

An enameled or stainless bowl or casserole large enough to hold rabbit comfortably

2½ lbs. cut-up ready-to-cook frying rabbit, fresh or frozen

A bulb baster

If you are using imported French vinegar, ⅔ cup would be right; if domestic wine vinegar seems strong and harsh, use ½ cup. Mix the rest of the ingredients with the vinegar in the bowl, add the rabbit, and baste with the marinade. (If rabbit is frozen, let it defrost in the bowl at room temperature, basting frequently, and pulling pieces apart from each other when possible, until completely defrosted.) Cover bowl and refrigerate it, basting and turning the rabbit occasionally. Marinate at least 24 hours, although you can leave the rabbit safely for 2 or 3 days because the marinade also preserves the meat.

2)
The braising sauce—sauce au Saupiquet

½ cup (4 ounces)
lardons
(1½-inch sticks ¼ inch thick of bacon blanched 10 minutes in 1 quart water)

2 Tb olive oil or cooking oil, more if needed

A large (11-inch) frying pan (no-stick recommended)

1 cup sliced onions

A heavy, covered, flameproof casserole large enough to hold rabbit pieces easily

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brown the
lardons
lightly with oil in the pan over moderate heat. Then stir in the onions, and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are tender and lightly browned. Transfer onions and
lardons
to the casserole with a slotted spoon, leaving fat in pan.

The rabbit and its marinade

Paper towels

Salt and pepper

Optional: the rabbit’s liver, quartered, seasoned, and floured

3 Tb flour

While onions are cooking, remove rabbit from marinade, and dry thoroughly with paper towels; reserve the marinade. When onions are out of pan, add more oil if necessary, so that pan is filmed by ⅛ inch, raise heat to moderately high, and brown the rabbit pieces nicely on all sides. Season with salt and pepper, and add the rabbit to the casserole. (Brown optional liver at the same time, and set aside for later.) Sprinkle on half the flour, toss rabbit in casserole, sprinkle on rest of flour, and toss again.

Heat casserole to sizzling on top of stove, then set uncovered in upper third of preheated 450-degree oven for 5 minutes; toss again, and return casserole to oven for 5 minutes more. (The oven is an easier way to brown and cook the flour than sauteing on top of the stove; but if you do not wish to use your oven, you may sauté.)