Lapin à la Moutard

      The only way I've cooked rabbit until now was to cut it up into pieces and make a rustic stew with cider and bacon, with the meat still on the bone. It's an excellent way to treat the meat and, as a rabbit dish, is hard to beat. I wanted to try something different this time though, and I read about lapin à la moutard, or rabbit with mustard. It's a classic French dish which would usually be prepared in a similar way to my rabbit stew, in quite an unfussy rustic fashion. To make things more interesting I thought I'd try something different, a little more complicated and fun to prepare. 

      The problem with cooking rabbit in large jointed chunks is that the tender loins which lie either side of the spine require brief cooking to ensure that the meat is still moist. Like chicken breast, if the loins are overcooked they will be very dry and quite unpleasant to eat. The legs on the other hand, consist of more well-used muscle which is more flavoursome and considerably tougher (especially if the rabbit is wild). These requires longer, slow cooking to obtain the best flavour and texture. So, I will remove the legs and the loins from the rabbit and cook them separately.

      This recipe makes good use of the rabbit, so nothing is wasted, although the liver, heart and kidneys are set aside for use elsewhere. The loins I separated from the main body and gave a mustard crust before sautéing, the carcass was used to make a delicious stock which was then used to slowly braise the legs and then to make some mustard sauce. 

      You may know already of my love of brining. I decided to make a mustard flavoured brine to enhance the flavour of my rabbit legs and to make them extra juicy and tender when cooked. I took Brian Polcyn's all purpose brine recipe from Charcuterie and added some extra flavourings. I then made a ballotine out of the leg meat. Traditionally a ballotine is a whole piece of meat that has been boned, stuffed with extra flavourings added to the meat and rolled into a uniform cylinder. My ballotine was a variation on the traditional version, using the already cooked leg meat, mixing it with some parsley, garlic and dijon mustard and then rolling it in cling film. Since the rabbit meat is quite lean, I added some duck fat to the mixture to help it stay moist.

Lapin à la Moutarde (Serves 4)

      Preheat the oven to 250C. Take 2 rabbits (skin and guts removed), each weighing about 1.25kg; remove the legs and set aside. Carefully cut out the loins from either side of the spine, cut off the membrane and trim of any sinew. 

      

      To make the stock: place the rabbit carcasses in a roasting tray, coat them with oil and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes until lightly browned. Meanwhile, heat a splash of oil in a saucepan and lightly brown 1/2 a leek, 1 carrot and a clove of garlic. When the rabbit carcasses are done, add to the pot and crush them to make a snug fit. Place the roasting tray over the cooker and de-glaze with a splash of white wine. Add this to the pot along with enough cold water to completely cover. Slowly bring to the boil, then reduce to a barely trembling simmer and cook like this for 4 hours, frequently skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. When it is done, strain the stock through a fine sieve and set aside.

      

      To make the brine: place the rabbit legs into a container and pour over enough water to just cover them. Measure this water, then discard and pour the same amount of fresh water into a saucepan with 6% of the water's weight in salt (40g of salt per 1 litre of water), half that amount of sugar (20g sugar per litre of water), 3 bay leaves, 1 clove of garlic, 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard and a few black peppercorns. Dissolve over a low heat then refrigerate until completely chilled. 

      Once the brine is cold, add the rabbit legs, and leave in the fridge for 2 hours, ensuring that the meat is completely covered. After 2 hours, remove the front legs, rinse, dry them and refrigerate. Leave the hind legs in the brine for another 2 hours as they are larger and require longer for the salt to penetrate through the meat.

      Place the brined legs in a casserole dish or roasting tray and cover with the stock. Cover with foil and place in the oven heated to 150C for 2 hours, until the meat is just tender and flakes off the bone easily. Take out 120ml of  the stock and reduce by half in a separate pan. While the meat is still warm, take the meat off, flaking it into medium sized pieces and place in a mixing bowl. Add a small handful of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, a finely chopped clove of garlic, 60g of melted duck fat and the reduced stock. Mix well, and season lightly with salt and cracked black pepper. Now clear the work surface, moisten with a wet cloth and lay down several sheets of cling film, ensuring there are no air pockets trapped. Place the rabbit meat along the length and fold the cling film over it, creating a cylinder. Roll it up so that the meat is tightly packed with no air pockets and tie securely at the ends. Place in the fridge to set for several hours. 

      Make the mustard sauce by reducing the stock by 1/3, and thicken by whisking in some beurre manié until the desired consistency is achieved. Add a few tablespoons of double cream, a large handful of chopped flat leaf parsley and 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard. When you are ready to eat, slice the ballotine into portions with the cling film still on (you should get 4 decent sized portions). Fry in oil over a medium heat, to nicely brown both ends. Place in the oven for 5 minutes at about 200C to heat through. Meanwhile, prepare the  loins; brush them with Dijon mustard and roll in breadcrumbs. Fry in the same pan until golden, then place in the oven until they are just firm to the touch. Serve with baby boiled potatoes, wilted spinach and plenty of the mustard sauce.