Tastes like chicken..

It was one of those warm spring afternoons, and I took a quick trip to the local supermarket to figure out dinner. Nothing planned, just seeing what looked good. That’s usually how the better meals happen.

Then I saw it. Rabbit. Sitting in the frozen section next to soup bones and chitlins. And for some reason, right nearby… Miracle Whip. A strange combination. Very strange.

As soon as I saw the rabbit, I remembered a dinner my mom made when I was about 12. She told us it was chicken. Everything looked normal, tasted normal… until I hit a bone that definitely didn’t belong to any chicken I had ever seen.

“THIS IS NOT CHICKEN.”

It was like a leg and thigh from some kind of mutant bird. Bigger bones, different shape. Something was off.

That’s when she finally told me – it was rabbit.

My dad jumped in right away and said he used to eat it all the time back in the early 1940s. He had raised them for the local market. To him, there was nothing unusual about it. Just good food.

Looking back, I probably shouldn’t have been that surprised. This was the same house where I once opened the basement fridge and found a plucked sparrow staring back at me. My mom tried to cook it. One bite and that experiment was over.

So standing there in the store, I grabbed the rabbit and decided to recreate that meal from when I was 12.

I called my mom, told her what I was doing, and she immediately said, “Make rabbit fricassee.” She walked me through it, and I kept it in mind.

Then I went ahead and made my own version—a slow braised rabbit with onions and a rich, savory sauce.

Most versions of stifado are tomato-based. My mom’s wasn’t. It was braised simply with whatever they had on hand. This is closer to how my mom made it back in the Peloponnesian countryside.

If you’re on the fence about eating rabbit, this is a good place to start. It’s tender, flavorful, and not nearly as unusual as it sounds.

Serve it with some buttered egg noodles and a simple green salad, and it all comes together into a really satisfying meal.

And yeah… maybe Wile E. Coyote was onto something.

A butcher can order you a rabbit if they do not carry it in the store. See, it looks like chicken..

Kouneli Stifado

Greek Braised Rabbit

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Servings: 4

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Greek

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 rabbit about 2 1/2 pound, dressed, cut into serving size pieces
• salt and fresh ground black pepper as needed
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 onion diced
• 2 celery ribs chopped
• 3 cloves garlic chopped
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup chopped tomato
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Equipment

• Dutch Oven

Method

 

1. In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high flame. Season rabbit pieces with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, brown the rabbit in batches. Make sure it’s nice and browned on all sides. This should take about 6-7 minutes. Don’t cram it all in for one browning or you steam your meat. And don’t move it around when browning each side. Just leave it be.
   1 rabbit, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and fresh ground black pepper as needed
2. Remove and put the rabbit on a plate. Add the onions, celery, and garlic. Sauté for about 5 minutes until they are translucent. Add the wine, and stir to scrape any browned bits from the bottom. Bring the wine to boil for a minute or two; then add the tomato, chicken broth, rosemary, thyme, and oregano.
   1 onion, 2 celery ribs chopped, 3 cloves garlic, 1/2 cup white wine, 1 cup chopped tomato, 2 cups chicken broth, 1 Tbsp rosemary, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp dried oregano
3. Add the rabbit back in, and stir to combine. Cover tightly. Place the rabbit into the preheated oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Cook until the rabbit is fork tender. Add salt to taste. Allow to rest for 20 minutes or so before serving. Sprinkle with parsley before serving
   1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Notes

I served it with some buttered egg noodles and of course some bread to soak up the goodness

And yes, you can do this with a chicken.

I tried to get artsy with the pictures.

OPA!