Topic: Rabbit for dinner!!

[Hi_Hoe]

Does anyone here keep rabbits for home consumption?

Im edging towards contemplating about thinking about deliberating about the idea of keeping our furry little friends in order to snap their necks and eat them.

Can anyone offer advice as to which breeds make good eaters? Ive googled the subject a few times, and from what i can gather, you can simply eat the everyday domestic bunny?! Can this be right??

Any feedback welcome!! (and i'm aware tis isnt an easy subject to broach!!)

[lottie lou]

If you get them giant bunnies, sorry forgot their name but its not Harvey, they have a decent bit of meat on them I think.  Chinchillas as supposed to be good but rabbit eating fanciers reckon there is a difference in taste between domestic and wild bunnies.

[Hi_Hoe]

Thanks, Lottie, Lou.

I had an educated guess that wild would taste different (and better?) to domestic.

I guess there are lots of factors i should be considering too - such as welfare and diseases etc. I wonder if some bunnies are simply more suited to being 'more edible' than others.

Have googled giant rabbits and the info seems more geared to keeping them as pets more than fodder, tho!

One of my memories as a kid was visitng my grandparents house and the sight of 1 or 2 rabbit strung upside down over a bucket in the front porch welcomed me every now and then, along with the overwhelming aroma of rabbit, leek and potatoe stew which was always bubbling away nicely on the stove! Perhaps the self sufficiency gene has surfaced in me!!

[Mikeakabigman]

I have kept and bred Rabbits on and off for over 45 years, both for pleasure and for eating. The breed I would recommend for meat production would be the New Zealand white, they were originally developed specifically for the meat and fur trade. They are large docile animals weighing in at 9-12lbs. Most of them are white with red eyes, though there are a couple of other colours which are fairly uncommon.
To my palate, wild Rabbits have a more "gamey" flavour than their domestic cousins.

[Nigel B]

I'm right with you Hi Hoe.
 I have collected a whole bunch of pallets to make some hutches ready to start a breeding program. I'll try them first in the garden until I get the hang of it, then move the whole operation down to the allotment... I hope.
We could probably swap notes as we go along....

[OllieC]

I recommend gutting one from elsewhere before putting too much effort into breeding them. I recently shot a wild one in the garden and was actually sick when gutting it, despite keeping the stomach etc. intact. There's a unique smell from rabbit insides that you can taste when eating the meat (possibly worse if you were sick an hour ago whilst getting a waft of it) and I couldn't enjoy it. The kids liked it though!

We're so removed from that part of our food - hopefully you're made of stronger stuff than me!

[goodlife]

Yes..killing living things with bare hands for food is not easy and having to sort the meat from the fur is another turn off.
I've never eaten rabbit that is bred for the 'purpose', just wild ones and luckily for me I get them already buthered from gamekeeper.
I do enjoy the flavour but I do have to switch my brain off from thinking what I'm eating or I struggle to swallow the food....poor bunnies.
Ollie's recommendation for trial butchering does make sence..one may end up having garden full of pet rabbits

[Digeroo]

poor bunnies[/quote

We had a pet one once and I really wished I had eaten it.   Fox got it, though not soon enough for my liking.  It was a fearsome creature.  It growled, spat, kicked and nibbled cables.  It sat in its cage and thumped endlessly.  It was the summer without vegetables.    Give me a rabbit stew any day. 

I think that wild ones taste better but a farmed one still makes a very good stew.

[Nigel B]

Well we're no strangers to eating wild meat here at home.
Rabbit, pheasant, chicken and sometimes partridge are all eaten with pleasure now the family is used to the idea. Even our four-year-old grandson understands the difference between a pet and food as he's watched them being plucked and/or skinned for the pot.

OllieC... :-) The secret, or not-so-secret, is to gut and prepare them them the day before eating if at all possible.  It works for me anyway. Then 'that' scent is no more than a memory and not such a strong reminder that we have to kill in order to eat meat.
No-one likes to kill things, mostly, but if we are to eat meat then we should have the wherewithal to do it ourselves imo.

Incredible isn't it? We are only one or two generations away from everybody having to bring home freshly-killed meat to eat, and yet we perform like its something we haven't done since the stone-age. Just thirty years or so ago and the butchers' window would be full of hanging meat complete with feathers or fur that you had to pay extra for the butcher to prepare for you. 
Saturdays used to be full of the smell of the backyard burning of feathers and stuff.

Back to rabbits though. I think the biggest problem I'll have is where to source the right breed, although it is possible to use any breed I know. The NZ Whites sound perfect.
I'll get on with making a batch of hutches/cages when the weather picks up a bit. Then see what's available. :-) 

How about you Hi Hoe? Still up for it?

[Hi_Hoe]

Thanks for your comments guys! 

TBH I half expected a bit of flak from the animal lovers amongst us!

Been pondering the subject all day whilst at work, and I see more reasons TO keep rabbits than to NOT!!

I mean, their waste (parcels/ straw etc)  =  great fertiliser,
and their meat = fnatastic tasting, free(ish), fresh and satisfying!
Not to mention keeping a select few for the kids to play with/ terrorise!!

 

NigelB, yeah cool! Seems like you're ahead of me though - I havent got anything in place just, so I guess Ill have to get cracking!!

Been googling the NZ whites and I think they'll fit the bill nicely. They seem like a nice looking bunny, and apparently they're pretty docile - should make the job of despatching them less ...errm...I was going to say less difficult , but...... well, its never going to be easy i s'pose!

Thanks once again guys-

Hutch building will soon commence!!

x

[ACE]

Why bother with all the hutches, feed, straw and work involved in keeping and breeding them. Open any local paper and you will see an ad titled 'Rabbit free to good home'. These have usually outgrown their hutch or the kids have got fed up with looking after them. Tender and fat through lack of exercise, perfect for the pot. Take a nipper along with you to convince the donor that you want a pet. Get it for nothing and usually a hutch for stoking the boiler. As for paunching them, slit them from @rsole to breakfast time and one big shake straight after killing it. It all drops out apart from the lights.

[Squash64]

Why bother with all the hutches, feed, straw and work involved in keeping and breeding them. Open any local paper and you will see an ad titled 'Rabbit free to good home'. These have usually outgrown their hutch or the kids have got fed up with looking after them. Tender and fat through lack of exercise, perfect for the pot. Take a nipper along with you to convince the donor that you want a pet. Get it for nothing and usually a hutch for stoking the boiler. As for paunching them, slit them from @rsole to breakfast time and one big shake straight after killing it. It all drops out apart from the lights.

You're all heart ACE!

[Hi_Hoe]

You do have a way with words, ace!!

[lottie lou]

NZ whites..... so that was what our Lady Di and Prince Charles were (kids named them).  They grew enormous.  Watch the neighbours though, ours build his path right next to our rabbit hutch and then complained very loudly from behind the fence about the smell.

NigelB: hope you hare not on our plots

[Hi_Hoe]

@ mikeakabigman, what age/ weight would you despatch 'em? Im thinking 12 wks onwards??! perhaps im way off???!!

[gazza1960]

Crackin Hearty Meal with strong Flavours,for when your starvin !!!

Raid the hutch and get bizzy  !!!!!!!!!

Ingredients

1lb Boned Rabbit
2 cloves Garlic sliced thinly
10 slices of Pancetta
1 1/2 lb of Tomatoes,peeled ,seeded and roughly chopped
3 tbsp of Basil chopped
Ground salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

Vegetables for Roasting
 
HARD VEGGIES
Small Potatoes
Butternut squash
Parsnips

SOFT VEGGIES
Banana Shallots
Red Onions
Fennel Bulb
6 whole Garlic bulbs
Fresh Thyme
Fresh Rosemary
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil
salt & Pepper

Preheat Oven to 200 degrees

Prep Roasted Vegetables to a uniform size so they roast evenly.

Then Prep Tomatoes,and cook on a medium heat for 10 mins, stir in chopped Basil and season with salt and pepper.

Place Tomatoes in base of Ceramic Dish.

Meantime,prep Rabbit pieces...............


Lay 2 slices of Pancetta on board,then position rabbit in the middle,place 2 thin slices of Garlic and wrap together....Thyme strands can be added whole or leaves added loose.


Tuck loose ends under Rabbit.


Place Wrapped Rabbit onto Tomatos in dish.

Put into oven top for 30 mins open topped

Place tray of HARD vegetables into middle of oven sprinkle Herbs and olive oil and balsamic vinegar for 30 mins...season toward end of cooking.

after 10 minutes..............

Place tray of SOFT vegetables in bottom of oven sprinkle with herbs and oil and balsamic vinegar for remaining 20 mins.


Vegetables should be Roasted Equally but cook to your liking.


Pancetta wrapped Rabbit ready to serve.


Serve with steamed vegetables and enjoy a thoroughly Rustic and really tasty Roasted Combination.

Enjoy

Gazza
 

[Nigel B]

Have I proposed marriage to you yet Gazza?


Lottie Lou

NigelB: hope you hare not on our plots

Sorry. What?

[ACE]

Anne Williams has done a series of books on backyard farming. I am sure there is one on rabbits. Might be out of print now. But worth a search.

[Digeroo]

Wow Gazza that does look good.  I can almost smell it.

[Hi_Hoe]

My vote for best post ever goes to Gazza!!!!

Looks chuffin' delicious!!

*tounge lops to one side and drools*