1 Rabbit (whole)
Garlic Salt
Pepper
Spreadable Butter
Olive Oil
BBQ Sauce
This recipe gives steps to brine the rabbit prior to cooking, but we had already done a 2-day salt brine from butcher date, so we skipped this part.
1. Rinse your rabbit well, put it in a pan, and rub it down in Olive Oil - just enough to give a thin coating.
2. Turn on the grill to get it warming up. Remember - rabbits should be cooked low and slow!
3. Before putting the rabbit on the grill, ,rub some butter on it, then sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper to your desired flavor level.
4. Put the rabbit on the grill. Cook time varies based on rabbit size and grill type, but averages 2-5 hours. Rabbit will be done when core temp reaches 170-degrees (F).
5. While the rabbit is grilling, baste it with butter every 15 minutes. We also flipped the rabbit over every 15 minutes to assure even cooking.
6 When your inner temp is getting close to 170-degrees, baste the rabbit with your favorite BBQ sauce.
7. Once you get to 170-degrees internal temperature, remove the rabbit from the grill and enjoy!
The original recipe included a brine soak, and didn't suggest flipping the rabbit over. It looked pretty good up until the last portion when the BBQ sauce was added and then it cooked ten minutes more. It came out looking black and burnt, and it was admittedly a little dry. I think we should have basted more frequently (Tony misread the recipe and thought we needed to baste every 20 minutes). The kids were hesitant to eat this one because "it looks burnt" but the side flaps below the ribs and in front of the back legs tasted like a barbecue jerky. It wasn't bad, but I think if we repeat the recipe, we'd do a few things differently (baste every 15 minutes instead of 20, cook at a lower temperature initially, and possibly wrap it in tinfoil if we felt we were loosing too much moisture). Not a bad recipe, but you do need to be punctual with timing for this one to work.
1 rabbit, whole
1 cup (packed) brown sugar
2/3 cup (apple cider) vinegar
1/4 cup lemon-lime pop (we used Sprite)
2-3 Tablespoons (minced) garlic
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
2 Tablespoons corn starch
2 Tablespoons water
1. Use a non-stick cooking spray to line the crock pot. We didn't have any, so I just rubbed some olive oil around the edges and bottom.
2. Place the rabbit in the crock pot
3. Mix the sugar, vinegar, pop, garlic, soy sauce, and pepper together - then pour it over the rabbit.
4. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.
5. Remove rabbit from the crock pot. It will fall apart, so a slotted spoon would be a wise tool selection. Pour the remaining liquid into a sauce pan over high heat.
6. Mix the corn starch and water, then pour it into the sauce pan and mix well. Bring to a boil, let it boil for 2-3 minutes. It should start to thicken up and turn into a glaze.
7. Remove from heat and let sit for a couple of minutes. It will thicken more as it cools.
The original recipe calls for chicken and says the glaze can be served over rice or noodles, or potatoes. I preferred it over the rabbit as an additional sauce. Next time we will probably make rice on the side and I bet it would be delicious. Everyone agreed this one was scrumptious. It's certainly one we will repeat in the future, possibly with chicken if rabbit isn't available (or vice versa).
Today the first apples fell from the apple tree. One a critter got to before I could, and the other is badly bruised. I plan on tasting it tomorrow (when I'm not quite as stuffed with rabbit) to see if it's a sweet fresh-eating apple, or a sour cooking-type apple.
I still just can't seem to fathom how fortunate I am and how splendid this place is. For all the minor repairs and little things, it's truly amazing. The most stunning sunsets, a perfect lake view, and the fog over the fields and lake are beautiful.