by Lauren Kalinowski
Slow-cooked braised meats are the centrepiece of the Italian autumn harvest table. Especially rabbit.
My kids enjoy rabbit as much as I do, but sometimes we have to be careful how loud we say it. Walking through a PetSmart looking at the animals, my four-year old goes, ‘Mom, rabbit, look, it’s so yummy!’ Another time we were at a kids’ screening of Peter Rabbit and someone says, “mmmm rabbit! Mom, can you cook it for supper tonight?”
I’ve gotten weird looks, but it really is delicious and we love sharing our favourite dish with friends.
Rabbit is a cozy seasonal meal that cues the transition to fall and warms us through the winter. The kids and I learned to cook it using this recipe after a fall Sunday mass (in Italian) at Santa Maria Goretti. I sat with my kids’ nonna (grandma), and her friend as they were talking about plans for Christmas meals. Already! It wasn’t even Thanksgiving. Rabbit was always the centrepiece. We debated where to buy rabbit meat when you can’t get it from the farm, and the best brand of cornmeal for polenta (Purity). Then we did a practice run of the Christmas rabbit with pancetta and polenta. My mouth has never been happier.
Rabbit is a mild, lean and tender meat. It suits a special occasion but is well received for any Sunday dinner once snow threatens to fall. Around here it’s sourced from Quebec and available at butchers (The Butchery, Buffalo Valley Variety Meats, Ribeye Butcher Shop) by special order or frozen at the Italian Centre Shop. Generally, it’s sold whole, but if you can, quarter it like you would a chicken. Make sure you’re generous with the pancetta and olive oil so it doesn’t dry out. What doesn’t taste good wrapped in pancetta?
Rabbit with
Polenta and Pancetta
These are the cooking directions straight from the nonnas, much discussed and well-practised. In the nonna’s recipe, the rich and creamy polenta cooks for much longer than the package says. It makes an ideal base for the moist, fork-tender rabbit flavoured with fresh herbs and pancetta. The long cooking time makes it tender and flavourful. Both recipes take approximately one and a half hours to cook so they’re ready together. I’d serve it with braised greens or a bright salad.
Rabbit
| 1 | rabbit, quartered |
| 2 | bay leaves |
| ½ head | garlic, smashed |
| 3-4 sprigs | fresh rosemary and thyme |
| 300 g | pancetta, thinly sliced |
| 3 glugs | olive oil |
Wrap rabbit pieces with pancetta, securing with toothpicks. Brown each side until the pancetta is crispy. Mix remaining ingredients and toss with rabbit pieces so the meat is thoroughly coated.
Place in a shallow baking dish (like a lasagna pan) and cook covered for about 1 hour at 325ºF. Check halfway through and if it’s dry, add a splash of water to the bottom of the pan. (Pour water down the side of the pan so you don’t wash the flavour off the meat.)
Remove foil and finish to brown in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
Polenta
| 500 g | cornmeal (1 package) |
| 4.5 L | water (in a 6-quart stock pot, about ¾ full, up to the handles) |
| 1 stick | unsalted butter |
| 2 T | salt |
| 100 g each | Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Reggiano, grated |
Salt the water, then boil, once boiling remove it from the heat. Add polenta slowly to the edge of the pot and whisk it in—this is to avoid clumps—and note the time. Continue to whisk over medium-low heat. When it starts to blip with large, infrequent bubbles, cover with the pot lid and stir every few minutes for about half an hour (30 minutes after you have added the polenta). Remove the lid and stir often, scraping the bottom so it doesn’t stick, and continue cooking until it’s been on the stove for 1½ hours total. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and then the cheeses. Add the roasted garlic from the rabbit if desired.
To serve: Place a generous scoop of polenta on individual plates or on a large platter. Top with the rabbit pieces and pour the juices over for flavour.
Serves 4 hungry adults.