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Rabbit Stew, a French delicacy

2016-08-15
  • This Post
  • Chef : François
  • Category: Recipe
  • Posted on: Monday August 15, 2016
  • Comments : 41 Comments
  • Languages :  English  |   Français

   La version Française se trouve ICI
The rabbit stew, a French delicacy recipe that Madame d'Aubery taught me 







Source of the recipe

One of the first recipes that Madame d'Aubery taught me... A delicious dish that she used to cook perfectly !

She actually got the recipe from a chef working at a top restaurant in Lyon, France.

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery


 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Not sure how she was able to get the recipe ( during those times, recipes from top restaurants were such a secret that it was considered a real miracle to get them ). As she was a restaurant owner, I guess she used some sort of mafia amongst the cooks to steal those recipes ?

 

Ingredients

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
 
4 lbs 7 oz Rabbit (2 kilograms)

½ Cup Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons Butter (30 grams)

2 tablespoons of Flour

½ Cup Cognac or Brandy

2 Onions

5 Garlic Cloves

½ Cup Bacon

1 tablespoon of Tomato Paste

A small quantity of Thyme

A small quantity of Laurel (Bay) leaf

4 ¼ Cups Red Wine (1 Liter)

A small quantity of Water

3 Carrots

10 Button Mushrooms

1 pinch of Salt

1 pinch of Pepper

 

You will need...

Steps

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

Cutting the meat

If your

Rabbit

doesn't come cut, you will need to cut it yourself, which is more complex than let's say, chicken...

This video shows you how to proceed

 

Warm in a dutch oven the

Olive Oil

(½ Cup) and the

Butter

(2 Tablespoons or 30 g) and then brown the

Rabbit

(4 lbs 7 oz or 2 kg) until lightly colored

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 

Brown on all sides, but do not fully cook the meat !

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 

Add the

Flour

(2 tablespoons) and stir

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Deglaze with the

Cognac or Brandy

(½ Cup)

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Keep scraping the bottom of the dutch oven : this will release flavors and will avoid to burn the sauce.

The juices that stick to the bottom ('sucs' in French) are one the secret for a super tasty sauce : You have to continuously scratch the bottom to release them into the sauce, otherwise they stay, stick, and burn

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Add the diced

Onions

(2) and the diced

Garlic Cloves

(5) and stir

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Add in the

Bacon

(½ Cup) and cook for

5 minutes



 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Keep scraping... that will make your sauce tastier

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Add in the

Tomato Paste

(1 tablespoon) and stir

 

Add in the herbs :

Thyme

,

Laurel (Bay) leaf

and others...

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 

Starts to smell delish in the house !

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

The wine

Time to pour in the

Red Wine

(4 ¼ Cups or 1 Liter) : lower the heat to low/medium. Make sure to cover the meat with the

Red Wine

, and if not fully covered with the liquid, pour in some

Water

.

If you want to be super technical, you would follow Thomas Keller's advice (the Californian chef with 3 Michelin stars restaurants) : He recommends to boil and flambé the wine prior to using it. Madame d'Aubery was not doing it. Up to you !

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Slice and add in the

Carrots

(3)

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Lower the heat, reduce to a simmer

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Make sure you are covering...

 

Long cooking

The stew must cook for

2 hours

.

Make sure the stew is on a simmer, you want to avoid cooking on a high heat if you really want to make the rabbit meat tender and falling off the bones !

At some point, add the

Salt

(1 pinch) and the

Pepper

(1 pinch) (but not at the very beginning as the salt and pepper could become overpowering after evaporation)

You may bake in the oven as well

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

After the cooking time

After it is fully cooked, use a sieve to filter the juice

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

The sauce

To make the sauce, place into a blender and blend :
  • The juice
  • Half of the cooked carrots
  • Half of the cooked onions
  • A few bacon strips

 

Madame d'Aubery didn't add in the

Button Mushrooms

(10) directly... She would sauté them first in a skillet with butter

Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery
Then she put everything together in the dutch oven : the mushrooms, the blended sauce and the meat with the vegetables

 
Rabbit Stew of Madame d'Aubery

Rest

Madame d'Aubery had a secret : she would not eat this delicious recipe the same day : she would refrigerate the dish overnight before serving it to her guests the next days :

I tested and compared the tastes, and indeed, the sauce texture is thicker and the taste of the stew is more developed when you wait for a full day...

 
A real delicious treat... like in French restaurants

 


Comments for This Recipe

41 Comments
  1. On Sunday February 12, 2017
    A Little Girl wrote:
    This was the first time I tasted rabbit, let alone prepared it. I am pleased to report it was falling off the bone and delicious.
  2. On Monday February 13, 2017
    François answered:
    Thank you "A Little Girl", I'm glad you savoured it
  3. On Wednesday May 31, 2017
    MARIANNE E. KING wrote:
    this is the first time I made it the french way. I am used to do it the way my mother taught me from the Netherlands. This recipe is fantastic and would recommend it to everyone who likes to cook and also eat rabbit.
    Glad I found this on the internet.
    Thanks for sharing.
  4. On Thursday June 1, 2017
    François answered:
    Thanks for commenting Marianne and glad you savoured it !
  5. On Monday January 8, 2018
    A Piceno wrote:
    Hello, I have a couple of questions:
    1) I'm unable to use 4-1/4 cups of wine due to an allergy. What else can I use to replace it?
    2) How much Thyme is used in terms of a teaspoon?
    Thank you.
  6. On Wednesday January 10, 2018
    François answered:
    Hi

    I am not sure how to substitue wine, as it is the esential ingredient for the taste here.

    Are you allergic to Beer as well ? There is a Belgian recipe called "Carbonade Flamande" that is cooked with Belgian beer. You may replace the meat with rabbit as well.
    hope this helps
  7. On Sunday February 11, 2018
    Thomas wrote:
    Is there really no added salt in this stew?
  8. On Sunday February 11, 2018
    François answered:
    There is salt indeed, "en quantité suffisante" in French, which means "in sufficient quantities", along with pepper.

    Nice catch, I will add salt and pepper to the ingredients
  9. On Monday February 26, 2018
    Mailiis wrote:
    Delic! My husband despises wine and went for seconds. 😁 I served it with rice. Thank you so much for sharing.
  10. On Tuesday February 27, 2018
    François answered:
    Rice is indeed a good idea to serve this dish with!
  11. On Wednesday March 7, 2018
    david adams wrote:
    TO STRETCH THIS RECIPE, I ADDED BEEF BROTH AND 1/2 CUP BARLEY. DELICIOUS!
  12. On Friday March 9, 2018
    François answered:
    That's a bit of a stretch as beef is not rabbit, and barley is not used widely in French cuisine.

    But if it tastes good, nobody will complain !
  13. On Tuesday March 13, 2018
    Josh wrote:
    how many servings does this make?
  14. On Tuesday March 13, 2018
    Josh wrote:
    I'm intending on serving six.
  15. On Wednesday March 14, 2018
    François answered:
    I would say 3 to 4 but could be a stretch based on how hungry people are...
  16. On Saturday June 2, 2018
    Berenice wrote:
    Wonderful meal !
    My first attempt at preparing rabbit stew and I followed your recipe. My family loved it! Everyone had second helpings.
    Thank you.
  17. On Monday June 4, 2018
    François answered:
    Thanks Berenice, I'm glad you liked it
  18. On Sunday August 5, 2018
    Erica wrote:
    I’m curious what the benefits are to boiling & flambéing the wine first, especially when it simmers so long? Excited to make this tomorrow and serve on Monday!
  19. On Tuesday August 7, 2018
    François answered:
    Chefs like Thomas Keller or Bocuse claim that flambé the wine first removes the acidity. The dish tastes better
  20. On Monday November 12, 2018
    Charles wrote:
    @Piceno
    This website has a helpful list of substitutes for wine in recipes.
    https://www.thekitchn.com/simple-nonalcoholic-substitutes-for-red-and-white-wine-tips-from-the-kitchn-184394
  21. On Friday November 30, 2018
    KLM wrote:
    My autistic son, very picky about food, wants rabbit stew. Why? Because he makes it in Minecraft. I had to find a recipe with carrots snd mushrooms just like in the game, and yours looks like the one to try. Evidently we must put cooked baked potato in it as well. Because thats hiw it is in the game. Maybe his bowl will have that.

    Ive never cooked rabbit, so wish me luck!
  22. On Friday November 30, 2018
    François answered:
    Good luck !!
  23. On Sunday December 23, 2018
    Anonymous wrote:
    Dear Francois,
    What side dish would you serve it with?
    Lina
  24. On Sunday December 23, 2018
    Lina Ellina wrote:
    What side dish would you serve it with?
  25. On Sunday December 23, 2018
    François answered:
    You may serve this dish with rice, my favorite, or with steamed vegetables
  26. On Friday January 11, 2019
    Patrick wrote:
    Can I possibly replace the brandy with whiskey? What do you think? Or would anything else do the trick?
  27. On Friday January 11, 2019
    François answered:
    Cognac and brandy are interchangeable in cooking as cognac is simply a subset of brandy.

    Trying any other liquor will change the essence of the dish, but it doesn't mean it will taste bad. For instance, Northern Europeans make this kind of dish with beer, and while its called differently ("carbonade” ), it's still very tasty, though different in taste.

    So, as an answer to your question, you may try whiskey, but I would not advise it. Whiskey is good for "stronger" meats such as Beef or Pork. Can you try using Cognac instead ? Cognac can be expensive, but a cheap brand will do the trick...
  28. On Saturday January 12, 2019
    Patrick wrote:
    Absolutely. Brandy it is. I was just hoping to use what's in the cupboard! Thank you!
  29. On Saturday January 12, 2019
    Patrick wrote:
    I just jointed a whole rabbit and the pieces weigh only 1lb 11oz. Your recipe stipulates 4lb 7oz.
    Seems a lot!
    Can I just add a kg of chicken thighs or something? What do you think?
  30. On Saturday January 12, 2019
    François answered:
    You may always try something and call it "the Patrick touch". I would for instance add a couple TBSP of

    Madeira

    , or dry

    Jerez

    , or dry

    Port

    : I'm sure the result would be only better
  31. On Saturday January 12, 2019
    François answered:
    I think the weight refers to the whole rabbit before it's cut and trimmed, and in the end there isn't that much left... As for the

    chicken

    , yes, absolutely, go for it. ( but rabbit tastes so much better... )
  32. On Tuesday January 29, 2019
    Patricia wrote:
    I cooked a rabbit yesterday following your recipe for the first time. My husband tried it and love it. He is from Spain and his mother cooks it delicious. He loved mine. We save it for dinner tonight; but I am not sure what side dish go well with it? Will roasted potatoes work?
  33. On Tuesday January 29, 2019
    François answered:
    It's a good idea to cook, then let rest in the fridge, and heat/serve the dish one day after : the taste will be enhanced.

    I like to serve this dish with tagliatelle pasta, or rice
  34. On Monday March 11, 2019
    Steve wrote:
    Did you put in the liver and kidneys?
  35. On Monday March 11, 2019
    François answered:
    Hey Steve, no I don't, as my professional testers (the neighbours and friends as a matter of fact) don't like them, but nothing prevents you from adding them.
  36. On Wednesday October 16, 2019
    Jerrie wrote:
    I plan to make this in a few days and can't wait. However, the rabbit that I have is broken down and does not have any bones. Will the result still be the same?
  37. On Wednesday October 16, 2019
    François answered:
    No, it should not modify the taste.

    however, plan for a higher quantity of rabbit as you dont have the bones.
  38. On Thursday October 17, 2019
    Danielle wrote:
    Born and raised in st.remey France ..rabbit,geese,coq,duck.chicken graced our table ..and pork ..beef rarely,but sea food and meat did not grace our table at every evening ..that would have been sacrilege...rabbit ..and they were big ..mama would have 2 of them going ..the recipe is close to ..she used shallots,instead of onions ,always cognac ,and a good cooking wine ..all the vegtables she used was what was in season ..also had garden ..many times the little red potatoes in their jackets ..course the button mushrooms ,carrots,...and because my Pepe always liked his homemade mayonnaise..lol..mama or nene would always end up making it ..and yes they would make this meal on Saturday and served on Sunday ..which by the way was a meal that was enjoyed by all..from the appretizers to
    Soup that was served usuallly a light vegetable broth ..to the beautifully
    Prepared rabbit ..with home made boule of bread ...each course would be brought to the table and at same time the dishes would be passed over to whom ever had been assigned the Job of collecting ..Sunday dinners were for
    Sure three hour affairs ..one did not race through a meal but
    Enjoyed every morsel..our house hold had 3 generations living there under one roof..
  39. On Thursday October 17, 2019
    François answered:
    Nice sharing with us!
  40. On Thursday October 17, 2019
    Gregory wrote:
    What type of red wine do you suggest using?
  41. On Thursday October 17, 2019
    François answered:
    If you want to use a French red wine, then a Burgundy wine (Bourgogne) : Aloxe-Corton, Santenay or Pommard. You may substitute with Pinot Noir.

    The great Bocuse recommended wine "Julienas" for his coq au vin, that should work too. (never tried)

    If you want a more powerful marinade, then select a French Côtes-du-Rhône for instance a Saint-Joseph. Equivalency : Syrah wine.

    Hope this helps...

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What to cook with...

5 spice powder

, Almond extract,

Almond paste

, Almond powder, Almonds, Avocado,

Basil

, Beef,

Beef stock

,

Bordelaise sauce

,

Brown sauce

,

Buttermilk

,

Candied orange

,

Cardamom

, Carrots,

Celery

, Chicken,

Chicken liver

,

Chicken stock

,

Chili powder

,

Chipotle

, Chocolate,

Chorizo

, Cilantro, Cinnamon,

Cloves

,

Coca cola

,

Cocoa Powder

,

Coconut

,

Coconut mousse

,

Coffee

,

Cognac

,

Coriander powder

,

Crème fraiche

, Cumin, Diced bacon,

Dry yeast

, Egg Whites, Egg yolks, Eggs,

Espelette pepper

,

Fennel

,

Fenugreek

,

Fermented milk

,

Fish

,

Fish stock

,

Fish stock

, Garlic,

Genoa bread

,

Gianduja

, Ginger, Glucose,

Glucose powder

, Grand marnier,

Grand marnier ice cream

, Green onion,

Ham

,

Ham hock

,

Hazelnuts

,

Hoisin sauce

, Honey, Hot peppers,

Ice cream

,

Ice cream stabilizer

,

Icing fondant

,

Inverted sugar

,

Italian meringue

,

Ketchup

, Ladyfingers,

Lamb

,

Lard

, Laurel (bay) leaves,

Leeks

,

Lemon

,

Lemon zests

,

Lobster

,

Madeira

,

Mango

,

Masa

, Mascarpone,

Mascarpone cream

, Milk chocolate, Milk powder,

Mint

, Mushrooms,

Neutral gel

,

Nuoc mam fish stock

,

Nutmeg

,

Olive oil

,

Olives

, Onions,

Orange juice

, Orange zests, Oranges,

Palm sugar

, Paprika,

Parmesan cheese

, Parsley,

Pastis

,

Pastry dough

,

Pearl sugar

,

Peppers

, Pistachio paste, Pistachios,

Pork

,

Potatoes

,

Powdered anis

,

Puff dough

,

Rabbit

,

Raisins

,

Raspberries

,

Raspberry jam

, Red wine, Rhubarb,

Rice

,

Rice vinegar

,

Ricotta cheese

,

Rosemary

,

Rum

,

Rye flour

,

Sablée Dough

,

Saffron

,

Salmon

,

Sausage

,

Sesame oil

,

Sesame seeds

, Shallots, Soy sauce,

Spinach leaves

,

Split peas

,

Strawberries

, Sweet Tart Dough, Thyme, Tomato paste,

Tomatoes

,

Tonka bean

,

Tuna fish

,

Turmeric

, Vanilla,

Vanilla Custard

,

Vanilla sugar

,

Vegetable shortening (crisco)

, Whipping cream,

Whiskey

,

White chocolate

,

White wine

,

Whole flour

,

Worcestershire sauce

,

Yeast

,

Yoghurt

,

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4 lbs 7 oz Rabbit (2 kg)

½ Cup Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons Butter (30 g)

2 tablespoons of Flour

½ Cup Cognac or Brandy

2 Onions

5 Garlic Cloves

½ Cup Bacon

1 tablespoon of Tomato Paste

A small quantity of Thyme

A small quantity of Laurel (Bay) leaf

4 ¼ Cups Red Wine (1 Liter)

A small quantity of Water

3 Carrots

10 Button Mushrooms

1 pinch of Salt

1 pinch of Pepper