[Hasu Cook] I: Saute Rabbit

Hasu Cook Session I:
Saute Rabbit

Introduction

Hello fellow Liquidians! I'm Newbistic, the same dude behind the Ghetto Cook series of blogs. This is the beginning of a new series of blogs, the "Hasu Cook" series. This series is a continuation of my cooking journey featuring ingredients that are a bit too expensive to be considered "ghetto".

The change of pace is brought about by necessity. Recently my room mate (who likes to buy a lot of organic/super healthy stuff) has commissioned me to help her cook her rabbit meat. I've never eaten or cooked rabbit before, so of course I immediately thought it would be a really cool thing to cook and then blog about. The thing is, these furry lagomorphs clock in at roughly $8 per pound. I had a vague hunch some people would not appreciate the irony of having a TGC blog about how to cook rabbit.

So, saute rabbit. This is the cooking method I decided upon after much research on the subject of lagomorph cookery. It is a method suited for cooking a young, tender rabbit (or fryer rabbits). The recipe is lifted directly from Larousse Gastronomique (the bible for French cooking; 2004 First American Edition, page 375 of the Meat, Poultry and Game volume). Here is the exact text of the recipe:

[image loading]

Jesus fuck that's one tiny paragraph.

It's the simplest recipe in the book for rabbit with the least amount of ingredients. From what I have read on rabbits from the internet, the flavor of the meat is somewhere between chicken and turkey. It certainly seems possible to re-create a cheaper version of this dish using chicken.

A NOTE BEFORE I BEGIN: I'M A TOTAL FUCKING NOOB AT FRENCH COOKING. I FOLLOW THE RECIPE TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY USING WHAT I KNOW ABOUT COOKING MEAT. IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT MY PHOTOS AND THINK THAT IT LOOKS LIKE SHIT, PLEASE JUST FOLLOW THE RECIPE DIRECTLY WITHOUT GOING ALONG WITH WHAT I'M DOING.

Ingredients

Looks like dis wabbit is vewy vewy dead.

Total prep/cooking time: 25-30 minutes.

1.25 to 1.5 pounds (~600g) of rabbit
1/2 cup white wine
~2 tbsp lemon juice
2.5 tbsp butter, divided into 1.5 tbsp and 1 tbsp
4-5 tablespoons of stock*
1 small shallot
salt
pepper
parsley**

*The recipe did not specify what type of stock, so I assume any type is fine. I actually did not have any stock on hand, so I used the trimmings from the rabbit to create a tiny batch of makeshift stock.
**Italian parsley pictured, since it looked significantly fresher than the other parsley at the supermarket. You need only about 1/4 of what is pictured here.

Also worth noting is that this is a recipe for young rabbit. Do NOT use this recipe for hare or older rabbits.

Cooking

We start with the prep work as always. Give your parsley some gentle chopping and thinly slice your shallot. Roll your lemon around to loosen its juices for easy squeezing.

Complement your dead animal matter with some dead plant matter. It'll taste better.

On the rabbit side of things, wash and rinse off your rabbit pieces. Trim off any excess fatty bits. Rabbits are quite lean so you shouldn't have to cut off too much fat. Pat the pieces dry with a paper towel. This is important so that your pieces will brown while they saute instead of steam. Salt and pepper the pieces after you have pat them dry.

Meanwhile, prepare a lightly oiled, oven-safe vessel and pre-heat your oven to 200F. This step isn't directly in the recipe, but the recipe did say to keep the rabbit warm once they are pulled off the saute pan, and the oven is my chosen receptacle for when the rabbit is finished sauteing.

Elmer Fudd can learn a thing or two from whoever killed this rabbit. No need to go digging for buckshot here.

Over medium-high heat in a non-stick saute pan, melt 1.5 tablespoons of butter. The butter should be smoking before you put the rabbit pieces into the pan. If you place your rabbit into the pan and do not immediately hear sizzling, take the rabbit out and let the pan heat up more.

Saute your rabbit pieces on one side until it is brown, then saute it on the other side. From hindsight, I think I did not completely brown the pieces thoroughly enough (it's difficult to judge because the recipe did not provide pictures, but from the text it seems as if you are supposed to completely cook the rabbit through simply by sauteing. I had to finish cooking the rabbit in the oven at 300F for about 6 minutes). Cover your pan with a lid while sauteing to keep the heat from dissipating.

If you think about it, before a dish passes into the annals of history, it also had to pass through the anals of history.

When the rabbit is done, transfer the pieces into your oven-safe vessel and stick them into the oven for warm safe-keeping. Pour 1/2 cup of wine into your pan and dump in your chopped shallot. The wine should help loosen up all the stuck bits of meat, which will form the flavor base for the sauce.

Like the French, good Starcraft players always enjoy a bit of fine whine and cheese

Keep the pan uncovered and boil away the wine until it is at almost nothing. Then, add your stock, and reduce again to a few tablespoons. At this point add your last tablespoon of butter along with a squeeze of lemon juice. Melt the butter until you get a congruous looking sauce.

When I die, I'll ask to have a sauce prepared like this one poured all over my dead body too

Plate your rabbit. Pour the sauce over it and sprinkle on some parsley. Serve warm with potatoes or rice or salad or whatever constitutes a meal.

The Result

Don't think about Bugs Bunny. Don't think about Bugs Bunny. God dammit. Looks like he took the wrong turn at Albuquerque and ended up done like dinnah.

?? / 5 Well I didn't eat it, I cooked it for someone else. This is what French cooking is about, right? Right? Oh, well. I should probably eat out more at restaurants that serve this type of thing so I know what I'm dealing with. There certainly is some appeal about this type of cooking: it is simple in principle and uses few ingredients, but the amount of depth, skill, and possibilities to master the dish is tremendous to behold. Here's hoping it turns out good enough for me to have another chance at cooking something like this.

Conclusion

Learning to cook is both exciting and daunting. You can be putting your best foot forward at all times, yet never be satisfied with each dish you make, because you know the next time you make that dish, it will turn out even better.

This concludes the first installment of Hasu Cook. Questions and comments are welcome. This entry, future entries of Hasu Cook, and all entries of my other blog series The Ghetto Cook, can be found at my main blog http://foodinmind.wordpress.com

Until next time, feel free to shoot the next furry bastard that crosses your path (unless it's Robin Williams or something like that), because it'll certainly be delicious. Happy cooking.

EDIT: as per request, you can also find the Ghetto Cook series (and all of my TL blogs) at
http://www.teamliquid.net/blog/Newbistic1
Listed in reverse chronological order.

Last edit: 2012-04-19 18:23:25

Logic is Overrated

FakeDouble Australia. April 18 2012 12:47. Posts 570

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gg nice build order!

Edit: could you link the other series in your OP? would like to read your previous work too!

Last edit: 2012-04-18 12:50:58

Formerly known as carbonaceous, how to mumu? pm pls~

Froadac United States. April 18 2012 12:57. Posts 5604

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How much does rabbit cost in general? Where can you get it?

#1 EGSuppy fan!!

Newbistic China. April 18 2012 13:02. Posts 2911

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On April 18 2012 12:57 Froadac wrote:
How much does rabbit cost in general? Where can you get it?

I don't buy rabbit. From what my room mate says, she gets it from PCC, which is some kind of coop farm goods supermarket. Ostensibly you can get it from certain high-end supermarkets (maybe Whole Foods? But I don't shop there either).

The rabbit chunk I worked with was 1/2 of a rabbit, or 1.39 pounds for $11.11. That works out to roughly $8 per pound.

Fryer rabbit (young rabbit) meat is supposed to taste somewhat like chicken and turkey, except more tender and delicate in flavor.

Logic is Overrated

Froadac United States. April 18 2012 13:10. Posts 5604

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On April 18 2012 13:02 Newbistic wrote:

Show nested quote +

OK, thanks for the info. I have a couple super high end supermarkets nearby. I probably won't make it, but oh well.

#1 EGSuppy fan!!

boesthius United States. April 18 2012 13:11. Posts 9787

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unnnhhhgggggg that sauce looks so good I want to bathe in it. i love these blogs, i should post some of my own cooking adventures in my next few blogs. inspired!

5/5~

i hate everything http://boesthius.tumblr.com/

Froadac United States. April 18 2012 13:12. Posts 5604

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On April 18 2012 13:11 boesthius wrote:
unnnhhhgggggg that sauce looks so good I want to bathe in it. i love these blogs, i should post some of my own cooking adventures in my next few blogs. inspired!

5/5~

What do you enjoy cooking boes?

#1 EGSuppy fan!!

Daikas United States. April 18 2012 13:15. Posts 90

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Cool new series! I've always wanted to try rabbit, maybe one day I'll catch one and cook it.

I have a couple ideas for what you can do for another Hasu Cook: duck, venison or a braised/roasted veal shank. Or you could do a beef brisket or pulled pork, but you might be able to figure out how to do those ghetto style.

Is that a sword? Luxury! Is that a horse? Sloth! Is that a helmet? Vanity!

boesthius United States. April 18 2012 13:30. Posts 9787

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On April 18 2012 13:12 Froadac wrote:

Show nested quote +

What do you enjoy cooking boes?

everything and anything!

i hate everything http://boesthius.tumblr.com/

TheKwas Iceland. April 18 2012 13:32. Posts 344

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Why would you name yourself "terrible cook"?

Newbistic China. April 18 2012 14:10. Posts 2911

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I'll hold you to that

On April 18 2012 13:15 Daikas wrote:
I have a couple ideas for what you can do for another Hasu Cook: duck, venison or a braised/roasted veal shank. Or you could do a beef brisket or pulled pork, but you might be able to figure out how to do those ghetto style.

I can definitely do beef brisket or pulled pork, but the veal, that's a bit expensive for me and my room mate doesn't strike me as the type of person who'd bring home a slab of Bambi. Thanks for the ideas.

On April 18 2012 13:32 TheKwas wrote:
Why would you name yourself "terrible cook"?

I thought "Hasu" meant "medium skill" in Korean, as Chobo = noob, Hasu = average and Gosu = highly skilled.

I could be wrong though. "Hasu" is so that I can remind myself (and others) that I'm not quite "there" yet.

Logic is Overrated

TheKwas Iceland. April 18 2012 14:56. Posts 344

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haha not quite.

Hasu = terrible or trash (literally means 'sewer water')
Chobo = beginner
jungsu = intermediate
gosu = Elite skill

Good blog though ^.^
I've been meaning to try out your ramen recipe for a while now, looks better than normal ramen.

Ringall Finland. April 18 2012 15:59. Posts 136

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5/5

That looks so good .___.
(If I supply the necessary alcohol that is going to be consumed before, during, and after dining, can you fly here and cook for me? :3 )

Snute fanclub <3 (fan #106 :3 ) | "Bitches know me, I'm Jos 'LiquidRet' de Kroon. I drink, smoke and don't exercize." - Ret | http://bit.ly/GX57En

oGoZenob France. April 18 2012 18:19. Posts 387

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a non-french trying our cuisine ?? Blasphemy !
just a small advice, here we cut shallot in little pieces, not ring-like things, because it taste beter taht way =) And if you want to try something a little different, you can replace the wine with cider (the french one : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cider#France) Seriously, rabbit cooked in cider ("lapin au cidre") is the best thing that ever happened to mankind !

Joefish Germany. April 18 2012 18:44. Posts 305

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screw french cuisine and throw it in the fryer :D

No, seriously. It looks really tasty although I would have liked to see it with fixings and not only the rabbit lonely on the plate.
Will check out your other blogs and maybe try some myself.

5/5
But next time I want to know how it tasted.
Also liked the pictures

Last edit: 2012-04-18 18:45:26

Newbistic China. April 18 2012 18:49. Posts 2911

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On April 18 2012 18:19 oGoZenob wrote:
a non-french trying our cuisine ?? Blasphemy !
just a small advice, here we cut shallot in little pieces, not ring-like things, because it taste beter taht way =) And if you want to try something a little different, you can replace the wine with cider (the french one : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cider#France) Seriously, rabbit cooked in cider ("lapin au cidre") is the best thing that ever happened to mankind !

Thanks for the tip

All it said in the recipe was "chop shallots" and not how it should be done. I oscillated between a fine dice and thinly sliced, but went with sliced. Next time I'll cut it into little pieces.

Would you recommend making any other changes to the recipe besides just swapping out the wine for cider?

Logic is Overrated

Abort Retry Fail April 18 2012 19:03. Posts 2627

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You made me hungry! Ahrgh! That looks terrible delicious!

BSOD

Piy Scotland. April 18 2012 19:29. Posts 3054

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Cool. Only thing is you should really mince the shallot to make the sauce, as in cut them into very fine pieces. Best way is to tail the shallot, make fine vertical cuts up it, then fine horizontal cuts down it. This way you end up with tiny pieces that disappear into sauces and can just throw away the head and not risk chopping off your fingers.

My. Copy. Is. Here.

DarkPlasmaBall United States. April 18 2012 22:32. Posts 19998

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On April 18 2012 14:56 TheKwas wrote:
haha not quite.

Hasu = terrible or trash (literally means 'sewer water')
Chobo = beginner
jungsu = intermediate
gosu = Elite skill

Good blog though ^.^
I've been meaning to try out your ramen recipe for a while now, looks better than normal ramen.

So Adebisi > HasuObs? o.O

Anyways, this looks absolutely delicious O.O I started to salivate

"Those who can, teach. Those who can't, whine about teachers." ~Me

Yenticha April 19 2012 00:05. Posts 252

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wow good job!

I was surprised, in the US, not to find rabbit everywhere (like in French markets). Any reason why it's so hard to find? Also what's with the "rabbits are too cute" thing? aren't sheep cute to?

If you want to cook more rabbit, I'd recommend recipes of rabbit with mustard, its very very good, and in my opinion, easier to make than the wine sauce one.

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