Mustard sauce balances tangy and buttery flavors to cohere simple ingredients in an elegant dish. The hearty combination of protein and potatoes makes this rabbit recipe best for brisk spring evenings. For the less adventurous, preparing the mustard sauce with chicken is an excellent substitute, but naturally we recommend trying local rabbit for the full effect.
SERVES 4
TOTAL TIME: 1 HOUR
SERVE WITH SAUTEED COLLARDS AND GARLIC – lemon juice omitted
Ingredients
- red skinned potatoes – 6 medium, peeled and cut into halves or large chunks, so that pieces are equal sizes
- vegetable oil – 2 Tbsp
- rabbit or chicken – 3 lbs, cut into 8 pieces
- butter – 2 Tbsp
- yellow onion – 1 medium, finely chopped
- dry white wine – 1-1/4 C
- Dijon mustard – 3 Tbsp
- chicken broth – 1-3/4 C
- fresh parsley – chopped
Preparation
- Dry the rabbit thoroughly with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper
- Set burner to medium-high and use a large, heavy bottomed pot to heat oil until shimmering
- Add rabbit in two batches. Turn pieces once or as needed to brown all sides, about 5 – 10 minutes total per batch. Transfer browned pieces to a bowl.
- Lower heat, add 1 Tbsp butter to pot and sauté onion until soft
- Stir in white wine and simmer to reduce by one quarter
- Add the Dijon mustard and whisk vigorously to incorporate
- Return rabbit to the pot along with broth. Cover and simmer 30-40 minutes, or until tender and cooked through.
- While rabbit is cooking, place potatoes in a pot and fill with cold water until level is about an inch above the pieces.
- Leave pot uncovered, add salt and bring to a boil.
- Begin checking after 5 minutes: when potatoes can be pierced through with a fork but are not falling apart, drain water, cover potatoes and set aside.
- Remove cooked rabbit to plates. Whisk in remaining Tbsp of butter and add potatoes to sauce, toss to coat.
- Plate potatoes and spoon additional sauce onto rabbit. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
adapted from a recipe by Gourmet
