Recipe: Rabbit with Prunes

Name: Rabbit with Prunes
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 105 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 beautiful rabbit cut into 8 pieces (keeping the liver); 400 g (14 oz) of beautiful pitted Agen prunes; 2 shallots finely chopped; 1.5 dl of dry white wine; 2 dl of poultry stock or the same amount of water; 5 cl (1.7 fl oz) of wine vinegar; butter and peanut oil; salt and freshly ground pepper; 2 tea bags

By chef patrick Asfaux 4.9/5 (15 reviews) · 🍳 12 made it

Prep 60 min

Cook 45 min

Total 1h45

Servings 6 serv.

Rabbit with prunes is the autumn recipe par excellence. The delicate white meat braises for 35 minutes in a sauce enriched with blended liver, sharpened with vinegar, and plump Agen prunes. Serve in the cooking dish with a Madiran wine to complete it.

Ingredients for 6 servings

Adjust for

servings

1 beautiful rabbit cut into 8 pieces (keeping the liver)
400 g (14 oz) of beautiful pitted Agen prunes
2 shallots finely chopped
1.5 dl of dry white wine
2 dl of poultry stock or the same amount of water
5 cl (1.7 fl oz) of wine vinegar
butter and peanut oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tea bags

Step-by-step directions

1 1 hour before, boil 1 liter (1.1 qt) of water with 2 tea bags then remove from heat and soak the prunes. One hour later, drain them.
2/ In a large cocotte, melt 20 g (0.7 oz) of butter and 2 tablespoons of oil.
3/ When the mixture becomes a light brown color, add your rabbit pieces, salt and pepper, sauté without burning for 10 minutes on each side. Then, using a fork, transfer your pieces to an ovenproof dish (decant).
4/ Remove the fat from your cocotte, then return it to the heat and sweat your chopped shallots for 2 minutes then add the white wine while scraping the pan drippings (deglaze). Let cook for another 2 minutes then add the boiling stock (or water), adjust the seasoning, then add the plumped, pitted prunes.
5/ In a small bowl, blend the rabbit liver with the vinegar.
6/ Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F) (gas mark 6).
7/ Then add your blended rabbit liver to the sauce, bring to a boil and pour everything over your roasted rabbit pieces, into the oven for 35 minutes.
Serve in the hot dish in the center of the table, sprinkled with chopped flat parsley and accompanied, for example, with a good Madiran wine to go with this lovely mid-season dish.

Chef's tip

Rabbit with prunes is a dish you cook in autumn and early winter, when dried prunes come back into their own and game returns to the table. Historically, it's a classic of regional French bourgeois cooking, especially in Aquitaine where Agen prunes have always walked hand in hand with local cuisine. The prunes bring a discreet sweetness that balances the acidity of vinegar and the richness of rabbit liver. It's a Sunday dish, when you have time and want to show you can cook without fuss. Rabbit is hunted from September to February, but October-November is when the meat has the most flavor. At your butcher's, demand a fine farm-raised rabbit, not factory-bred. The liver must be flawless: bright red, no off-smells. For wine, a Madiran is the obvious choice, that sturdy tannat stands up to the sauce and dried fruits. A Cahors works too. If you prefer to stay lighter, a well-chilled Beaujolais villages at 14°C accompanies without overwhelming. Avoid overly delicate white wines; the sauce and liver will submerge them. For serving, bring the cooking dish to the table hot and scattered with chopped flat parsley. Steamed potatoes or good polenta will soak up this generous sauce. Nothing complicated: the recipe doesn't need it.

Frequently asked questions

Can you replace white wine vinegar with another type?

White vinegar or cider vinegar work fine. Skip balsamic, it's too sweet and dark, it drowns the flavors. Red wine vinegar will turn the sauce brownish, less attractive. Stick to 5 cl: the acidity balances the liver, not the other way around.

How long does this dish keep in the refrigerator?

Three days max, well covered. The sauce will gel as it cools (normal, there's collagen). To reheat, pour into a pot over medium heat, cover, leave for 20 minutes. Don't force the microwave, the meat dries out. Freezing works for 2 months but texture degrades slightly.

How do you keep tea-soaked prunes from becoming mushy in the sauce?

One hour of tea soaking is key: tannins tighten the skins. Drain the prunes thoroughly before adding. Add them only once the sauce is boiling, not before. Don't let them cook more than 10 minutes in the oven pot. The acidity of wine and vinegar protects them too.