Recipes

Pulled Rabbit with Chipotle-apple Sauce and Warm Corn and Cucumber Salad

Chris Greenwald, Iron Horse Vineyards

Serves 6 as appetizer or 4 as main course

 

2 Rabbit hind legs

1 T salt

1 t black pepper

1 t ground cumin

1 t chili powder

2 T olive oil

1 onion

1 carrot

1 celery rib

1 bay leaf

1 bunch thyme

¼ c dry white wine

2 c rabbit stock

2 cloves garlic

1 chipotle pepper (in adobo)

1 c applesauce

1 T cilantro

2 ears of corn

1 T unsalted butter

½ hothouse cucumber

2 T chives

Salt/pepper to taste

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rub rabbit all over with salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder.

 

Heat 1 T. of the olive oil in a sauté pan and brown rabbit legs all over, remove from pan. Add ½ of the onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf and thyme to pan and let brown slightly. Deglaze pan with white wine, reduce by ½ then add stock. Return rabbit to pan and place uncovered in oven for 1-½ hours, turning every 30 minutes (add more liquid to pan if necessary to keep same liquid level). When meat is soft and tender, remove from oven and, setting legs aside, strain liquid and save. When cool enough to handle, pull meat from rabbit legs. Discard vegetables and bones.

 

Dice the other half of onion and sweat in the remaining T. of olive oil in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Mince garlic cloves and Chipotle pepper and add to onion. Add braising liquid and applesauce to pan and let simmer to combine flavors at least 15 minutes. At this point add a little water if needed to smooth consistency of sauce.

 

Strain sauce through fine mesh sieve and add pulled rabbit. Mince cilantro and add to pulled rabbit. Check for seasoning and keep warm.

 

Cut kernels of corn from ears and peel, seed and dice cucumber. In a medium size sauté pan melt butter, when foam subsides add corn and cucumber and sauté until warm, check seasoning.

 

Place 2 T. of salad in middle of plate, top with pulled rabbit, drizzling any remaining sauce around plate. Sprinkle with minced chives and serve.