One of the great things about living in southern Louisiana is the meat, more specifically, the little Cajun meat shops everywhere. Everyone has their favorite go-to place for boudin or stuffed pork chops (I'm a Heleaux's girl myself), but sometimes, you try something from someone else's little shop and you stray. My sister goes to Don's, and ever since she shared their chicken burgers with hubby and me, I've been wanting to go there. FINALLY a weekend or two ago, we were running around town with my sister and she decided she'd bring us over to Don's (since it's totally in her side of town where I don't know my way around). Long story short (well, shorter than it could be), while there hubby and I got a well-seasoned rabbit. Remember when I made that rabbit stew and we were thoroughly unimpressed? That's because I didn't trust my (adopted) roots and smother the heck out of it Cajun style. So tonight, I did it the right way.
- 1 rabbit, quartered and well-seasoned to your liking (ours was heavily seasoned with the typical Cajun spices)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 14 oz chicken broth
- 14 oz water
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 1-2 tbsp water
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the rabbit pieces to the pan and sear each side. Place the rabbit in the crock pot, then pour in broth and water. Cover and cook on low for at least 5 hours.
You will know the rabbit is ready when the meat falls off the bone at the merest provocation. Remove the meat from the crock pot and let cool for a few minutes. Pull the meat off the bone, but be VERY CAREFUL of the gajillion tiny bones and bits of cartilage.
Place the meat in a large skillet and ladle a few cups of the broth mixture into it. Bring to a simmer.
In a small cup or bowl, combine the corn starch and water; make sure it's smooth.
In the skillet, push the meat to one side of the pan and let the juices collect at the other side. Slowly pour 2/3 of the cornstarch water mixture into the juices, stirring constantly. This will thicken up your sauce. Stir the meat back into the sauce and let simmer for a few moments.
Serve over rice!
(I planned to cook and post this recipe yesterday, but hubby and I were invited to a friend's house to watch the Saints game. Neither hubby nor I are big football fans, but we figured what the hell. We have grown up with the Saints being the losingest team around... And now, all I can say is WHO DAT! Saints going to the Superbowl? Never thought I'd see the day!)
Lately I have had the desire to try rabbit. There is something primal about it; it seems only recently (relatively speaking of course) that we have stopped eating it and instead taken the cute little fluffies into our homes as pets. Though, I do live in an area where people do at times eat rabbit, but it is an occasional thing. Few restaurants have rabbit on the menu.
A couple nights ago, hubby and I found ourselves at the grocery store trying to figure out what to eat. As we were looking through the freezer "cajun" section, I saw rabbit. I just had to have it and have it I did. I at first planned to smother it all as a good Cajun would, but as I looked for some guidelines online, I came across a recipe for French Rabbit Stew. I was lured by the glamour of the French and cast aside a Tony Chacheres gravy.
Sadly, hubby and I weren't too impressed; nothing about this stood out. I read that farmed rabbit is much more bland than wild so perhaps that accounts for the lackluster nature of the dish. Whatever the reason may be, I have decided not to post the actual recipe. I am undecided on whether I'll try rabbit again.
