Baked Rabbit Wrapped in Bacon

I'm normally a very visual person when it comes to food. That is- for me- it's all about what it looks like. Whether I'm checking out other diners meals as I'm contemplating the menu in a restaurant, choosing what to put on my plate at a buffet or selecting a recipe from a magazine or cookbook it has to look appealing. I have to look at the food and go 'Mmm that looks yummy' or I just won't bother. Even if it smells great, if I'm told it tastes good I just can't get my head around it if it looks unappetising, which is probably part of the reason that I struggled with this recipe. It's also why, even though I always include a picture, with this one I won't.

I'll be honest:- If you're thinking about a lovely roasted rabbit surrounded by baked vegies as a centrepiece for your table for your next dinner party- DON'T. While rabbit, duck, spatchcock and quail are all making a comeback you have to remind yourself why they were eaten in the first place. I know with my family it was simply because money was tight and rabbit, in particular, was in plentiful abundance as long as you had a good eye, a shot gun- and a wife who was willing to cook it.

These days rabbits are more than likely to be your children's pets and if that's the case don't cook rabbit this way. Essentially what you'll get from the oven is not an attractive, crispy skinned, white fleshed roast.  What you will get looks like a carcass you've hauled in from the forest, whacked it over the fire and slapped it down on a plate- garaunteed to send your kids crying from the table if this is not a sight that they are familiar with.

However, it did prove rather easy to cook, and my guests quite enjoyed the taste. My aunt who -as the smallest when she was a child- always got stuck with the ribcage, relished getting the leg at my table and thoroughly enjoyed it. Myself, not being over fond of the gamier meats, did not take to it so well. But if you like the taste of rabbit, if you have fond memories of eating it as a child- as many of my parents generation would- then this is one way to cook a rabbit.

I found this recipe- not surprisingly- in my Grandmother's CWA cookbook. I don't know what the date of publishing for this compilation was but I know it's old enough that most of the recipes refer to stoking the wood fired oven rather than preheating to 180 degrees. None of my contemporary cookbooks had a recipe for Roast Rabbit.

Ingredients:-

1 Rabbit
Rashers of Bacon
Roasting Fat
Seasoning

I adjusted this recipe a little bit, making use of more modern options so I left out the roasting fat and substituted an oven bag with a drizzle of olive oil instead. But the Bacon is essential.

First up you make your own seasoning. The book suggestes a combination of bread crumbs, parsley, herbs, salt and pepper and a little butter. If you have your own style of seasoning that will work just fine BUT do make an extra large amount as the cavity of a rabbit is a lot bigger and longer than a chicken. I didn't make enough and it all kind of disintergrated.

Stuff the cavity with stuffing and truss the hind and forquarters together. My grandmother used to use a bit of string or wire to 'sew' the cavity shut as an extra way of keeping the stuffing in. The cavity in a rabbit is by far more open than a chicken or turkey. Then wrap the rabbit in the bacon rashers. This is no time for dieting. Don't use the rashers that have had the fat removed as it is the fat in the bacon that prevents the rabbit drying out. Rabbit is notorious for being overcooked and dry which would truly make it unappetising.

Place the rabbit in an oven bag that contains a drizzle of olive oil and bake in the oven on a low heat for 1 1/2-2hrs. The meat won't go as grey as you might expect due to the bacon which will keep it slightly pink but it should be soft and tender and easy to detach from the bone. 

If you have pets, especially dogs, you may have to put them outside once the cooking begins. When I was little my mum used to cook rabbit and every time she opened the oven door she would have to fight to keep the family dog from jumping into the oven. For some reason the smell of cooking rabbit appeals to them over any other roast. It definately has a more gamey taste- to me not unlike lamb shanks only stronger. It is not a taste, I admit, that appeals to everybody but if you have the opportunity to cook rabbit, or like me was given a rabbit for just that purpose, it is well worth trying. Just don't expect it to look like a fabulous gourmet meal if you plan to roast it.

There are other ways to cook rabbit:- I do have a recipe for Country Rabbit in Red Wine for example that would certainly look more appetising- and the red wine would go a fair way in toning down the gamey taste. Or there is  Fricassee of Rabbit- very popular when my mother was a little girl- Rabbit Pie and Jugged Hare just to name a few. Perhaps if I were to cook rabbit again I might choose one of these instead. Certainly having the rabbit in casserole form would lend itself more to being set on the table in front of guests.