wild rabbit ragu w/ hand cut pasta
I absolutely love wild rabbit. It may feel unapproachable for a lot of people, but it is a great substitution for chicken as the flavour is not super intense, and the texture of the meat is very familiar. Most butchers will offer their rabbits whole, but they will also be more than happy to quarter it for you and take care of the initial prep work.
This is a super simple way to create one of the richest, most warming pasta sauces there is. It’s a great way to take advantage of the wonderful flavour of wild rabbit, and is as rustic as it gets.
Cook the rabbit slowly, with smoked bacon, herbs and some vegetables until it is super tender and falls off the bone. Flake the meat apart, reduce the sauce slightly, then put it all back together. It’s one of those sauces that’ll warm your bones on a cold winters night, but is also not out of place on a warm summers day. Just make sure you have some fresh bread to mop your plate afterwards.
for the ragu
1 whole wild rabbit (portioned into quarters)
8 thick-cut rashers of smoked streaky bacon
500g chicken/vegetable stock
1 large onion
2 celery sticks
5 garlic cloves
1 tbsp fresh thyme
1 sprig rosemary
4 bay leaves
30g salted butter
salt & pepper
for the pasta
250g type 00 flour
1 whole egg
4 additional yolks
a pinch of sea salt
method
Start by making your pasta dough. You can find the method here, or skip this step if you are using a pre-made pasta.
Once that is done, chop the bacon into 1cm chunks and add to a deep pan with a little oil. Cook until they start to give off a little fat and look like they are beginning to crisp up.
Dice your onion, finely chop the garlic and slice the celery into 0.5cm strips. Add this all to the bacon along with the thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves.
Whilst this is cooking, sear your rabbit pieces in a separate frying pan with a little oil. You want to slightly brown the outside, but not completely cook the meat.
Once the vegetables have softened, add the rabbit pieces along with any juice that it released into the frying pan.
Add the stock and simmer for 2-3 hours at a low heat.
Once the rabbit is tender and falls off the bone with little force, remove it from the liquid and allow to cool until you can touch it. Pull as much meat off the bones as possible, flaking up any larger chunks.
Put the meat back into the pan with the vegetables and stock and simmer at a medium heat for 45 minutes, in order to reduce the liquid a little more.
Once the liquid has reduced, add in the butter and any salt and pepper that you need.
At this point, cook your pasta so that it is ready at the same time as the meat.
Serve hot, adding plenty of meat and juice to your bowl of fresh pasta. Feel free to sprinkle a little chopped parsley on top, if you have it available.
