Braised rabbit with fennel and pastis and chickpea purée
Pastis and fennel is the perfect combination to complement the richness of this slow-cooked rabbit.
Ingredients
- 1 x 1.5kg/3lb 5oz farmed rabbit (ask your butcher to joint the rabbit into 2 legs, 2 shoulders, with the saddle and rack cut into 4. Keep the kidneys intact)
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 large fennel bulb, roughly chopped
- 1 lemon, juice only
- 250ml/9fl oz pastis
- 4 slices smoked ventreche or pancetta
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp roughly chopped fennel tops or fresh dill, to serve
For the chickpea purée
Method
Preheat the oven to 160C/140C Fan/Gas 3.
Place the rabbit in a large bowl and smother with the mustard.
Heat the oil in an ovenproof pan and gently fry the onion, garlic and fennel for 2 minutes. Add the rabbit, lemon juice and pastis and season with salt and pepper. Lay the ventreche on top.
Cover with a tight-fitting lid and bake for 1–1¼ hours. Leave to cool for 15 minutes.
To make the chickpea purée, blend the chickpeas and garlic in a food processor and gradually add the olive oil until a smooth purée is formed. Warm through in a saucepan.
Transfer the rabbit to serving bowls. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle over the fennel tops. Lay the cooked ventreche on top and serve with the chickpea purée.