Rabbits - pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeese don't take offence

[Mrs Ava]

At school yesterday a mum arrived with a couple of animal transporter boxes full of baby rabbits to sell.  All the mums and children were cooing, and buying these lovely little pets.  Number one son couldn't understand why everyone was going aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh.  'But we eat rabbit mum, we have them in our freezer!'  'Yes,' I replied 'but some people like to keep them as fluffy little pets darling.' 'Hmph, what, so they can eat them when they have made them bigger?'  I'm afraid my children seem to really understand where their food comes from.  This is the boy who when we go to the farm, with his sister, scratches the piglets backs and tells them they will be his breakfast in a few weeks time!!  ;D

[Mrs Ava]

[keef]

That reminds me - its getting near stupid pheasant season.. :P

Just hope you lad never hears them squeel. The first time i went ferreting with my mate as a kid i heard this and it really suprised and upset me - i did'nt know rabbits made any noise at all. Still you can never trust a rabbit,

Tim: Follow. But. Follow only if ye be men of valour, for the entrance to this cave is guarded by a creature so foul, so cruel that no man yet has fought with it and lived. Bones of full fifty men lie strewn about its lair. So, brave knights, if you do doubt your courage or your strength, come no further, for death awaits you all with nasty, big, pointy teeth.

King Arthur: What an eccentric performance.

[bennettsleg]

EJ, do you pop-off your rabbits yourself or get someone else to do it for you?  Just curious and I'm not being antagonistic. At least you know where your meat is coming from and that there's no cross-contamination going on.

[Mrs Ava]

Husband pops them off, he helps out with 'pest' control on a farm with his brother-in-alw.  The kids watch the skinning and cleaning.  The thing the kids loved the most was when my sister arrived with a goose that was bigger than the children, and mum and brother-in-law plucked and cleaned him.  Feathers everywhere!  My garden looked like it had been snowing!

[flatcap]

hi ej
we eat rabbits aswell my daughter thinks were sick and refuses to go into kitchen when hubbys skinning and gutting them must admit the smells horrendus but the dogs luv the kidneys fried ;D

[supersprout]

We enjoy furred and feathered game too EJ if we can get it undressed - dressed jointed hare at the butcher's £20, furry fella £5 at the Farmers' market ::) I do wear surgical gloves for skinning/plucking nowadays :-X :P

[robkb]

Hurrah - more rabbit fans! My kids love rabbit casserole, and my eldest daughter is counting the days until October 1st when pheasant season starts. Thank God for unfussy eaters who know good food when they see it :)

Cheers,
Rob ;)

[Hyacinth]

The first time I ever skinned, gutted, jointed & cooked a rabbit was years ago....still my fave way of cooking it. It's 'cacciatore' - ie 'hunter's style' & only uses the ingredients an Italian hunter has to hand...garlic, chillis, rosemary salt & red wine......the flesh turns deep red/purple and the aroma's to die for. The sauce thickens as it reduces & it's mopped up with thick chunks of sturdy rustic bread.....

wish I could get my hands on a hare, SS. Lucky you 8)

Pheasants - get a brace given to me at Christmas :)

[keef]

We get the odd hare now and then - but only road kill. I would never take them direct from the wild..In fact almost all the game i get is road kill - and 99% of that is stuff i find thats been hit already - my cars too new and nice to risk it myself  ;D We get munkjacks now and then too, they are lovely to eat.

This years pheasant's will start venturing out onto the roads soon, the stupid one's only last a few weeks before getting run over, but they need a bit more time to fatten up yet though There are fat ones about now, but there the smart ones left over from last year, the one's that actually manage to dodge cars - and bullets...

[greyhound]

wish I could get my hands on a hare

Get one of these, Lish!

<<<

;)

We get the odd hare now and then - but only road kill.

You gotta short memory!  BBQd hare, anyone?!  (Not recommended.)

[Shirley]

I remember sometime ago when "Watership Down" was at the cinema, a butcher shop had rabbits hung up with a notice "you've read the book, seen the film, now eat the cast"!

[Georgie]

ROFL!   ;D  But now Bright Eyes is going round and round in my head!  >:(

G x

[Hyacinth]

wish I could get my hands on a hare

Get one of these, Lish!

You saying they taste the same as hare, then? ;D

Oh, forgot the other ingredient for 'cacciatore'....shallots....whole & caramelized in the reduction. B. gorgeous.

Back to rabbits. NOW I want to cook the dish. Sadly the only rabbit I can get round here are those frozen ones from China or somewhere :'(

[bennettsleg]

I remember sometime ago when "Watership Down" was at the cinema, a butcher shop had rabbits hung up with a notice "you've read the book, seen the film, now eat the cast"!

Fantastic!! ;D ;D ;D

I wouldn't mind finding a source of goat.  Proper curries are made of goat. And half a pint of oil. And Mum has to make them. And and and!

Bit harder to kill off though.

[supersprout]

Have you tried ethnic (Asian/Caribbean) butchers?
Oh yummy yummy the half pint of oil :P :D

[bennettsleg]

Mum picked up a recipe book on Kenyan cooking when she lived there.  Her curries are of legend based on the infamous "take half a pint of oil" recipe - though she's gone a bit puritan with the oil these days  :'( - nothing makes the emulsion better than a bloomin great shlollop of oil.... ;D

[greyhound]

TBH, I discourage  < her from going after hares, as she invariably comes back with paws torn and bleeding from the flints.

She gets the odd rabbit, but usually they don't venture far enough from cover, and go to ground.

This, on the other hand, might be a better tool for the job:



Er, he does have four legs, btw.

[glow777]

Spent all afternoon in the rain stalking rabbits today shot at 6 missed 6! & one was so close i could of clubbed it to death with my rifle!

Our lurchers love rabbits but as yet none have been caught, though if we would let them constantly chase them they would damage themselves trying