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Home » Wild Game » Braised Rabbit with Garlic

Braised Rabbit with Garlic

By Hank Shaw on October 22, 2015, Updated June 11, 2020 - 50 Comments

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4.85 from 26 votes
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Braised rabbit with garlic recipe
Photo by Holly A. Heyser

I am indebted to the late, great Penelope Casas for this braised rabbit recipe. Casas, who died in 2013, was one of the foremost experts on Spanish food, and her cookbook The Foods and Wines of Spain, remains an invaluable part of my collection. This dish is from that book.

Spain has all kinds of vinegary-meaty wild game dishes, notably their famous escabeche with partridges or pheasants. The theory is that vinegar can offset any sort of gaminess, while at the same time helping to preserve things for a few days; it’s not a bona fide preservation technique, but it will help keep everything nice for a week in the fridge.

It is ridiculously simple.

Rabbit, browned in olive oil, braised with vinegar and lots of garlic and onion, served with some sweet peas right at the end. Everything is in balance, from the zippy sherry vinegar, the warmth of the slow-cooked garlic, the rabbit, which turns luscious after simmering for hours, and even the peas, which really come off as sweet when juxtaposed with everything else in the bowl.

Add good black pepper and you need nothing else — except for maybe a nice white wine.

Chances are you are here looking for a rabbit recipe, but know that you can substitute chicken, turkey, quail, partridge, pheasant, squirrel or grouse here. Basically any white meat.

Once made, this, like many stews will keep for a week in the fridge.

Braised rabbit with garlic recipe
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4.85 from 26 votes

Braised Rabbit with Garlic

Either store-bought or wild rabbits will work with this recipe; if you use wild bunnies, I'd suggest cottontails and snowshoe hares. The quality of the vinegar and garlic matter. I use sherry vinegar, and I urge you to use it if possible, but a good cider, white wine or even malt vinegar would be alternates. Home-grown garlic is best, as it will often be less harsh and have larger cloves than regular garlic, but any garlic will work. 
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time2 hrs
Total Time2 hrs 20 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Spanish
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 423kcal
Author: Hank Shaw

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 domestic rabbit or snowshoe hare or 2 cottontails, cut into serving pieces
  • 1 large yellow onion, sliced into 1/4" pieces from root to tip
  • 1 head of garlic, cloves whole but peeled
  • Salt
  • 1/3 cup sherry vinegar
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Black pepper
  • 1 cup peas

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil in a large, lidded pot like a Dutch oven or, if you have one, an earthenware pot. Brown the rabbit pieces well, salting them as you do. Remove them as they brown and set aside. When the rabbit is browned, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic cloves and cook another minute or two.
  • Nestle the rabbit back into the pot, sprinkle some salt over everything and add the vinegar and bay leaf. Pour in enough water to get about halfway up the sides of the rabbit. Cover the pot and cook slowly over low heat for about 2 hours.
  • When the rabbit is tender, add black pepper and mix in the peas. Serve with lots of crusty bread.

Nutrition

Calories: 423kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 203mg | Sodium: 130mg | Potassium: 1074mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 277IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 9mg
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Filed Under: Featured, Recipe, Spanish, Wild Game

Avatar for Hank Shaw

Hank Shaw

Hey there. Welcome to Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, the internet's largest source of recipes and know-how for wild foods. I am a chef, author, and yes, hunter, angler, gardener, forager and cook. Follow me on Instagram and on Facebook.

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Comments

  1. Avatar for Wayne RemingtonWayne Remington says

    March 24, 2023 at 3:58 am

    Delicious. However, I did not get tender rabbit, nor flavorful rabbit with cooking it on the cooktop. Perhaps I had the setting too low, but I cooked it for four hours instead if two. (I’m still getting used to cooking on induction. I like it, but there is a learning curve for me) I decided I needed to braise it the way I braise venison shanks- in the oven at 350 ( for three hours). This I did and the result was terrific. Rabbit was tender and the sauce reduced and the flavors intensified this way.

    Reply
  2. Avatar for CinnamonJoeinIACinnamonJoeinIA says

    February 13, 2023 at 5:57 pm

    My local grocery store had just about every kind of vinegar except Sherry vinegar. I bought some imported Italian white wine vinegar that wasn’t too hard on my wallet to use instead, since white wine vinegar was mentioned in the recipe. I tasted it when I got home, and it really didn’t taste a whole lot different than plain white vinegar to me, which was a little disappointing. It concerned me that maybe it wouldn’t work in the recipe. Am I over thinking this? I have Sherry cooking wine, would that be better to use as a substitute? I also have some good apple cider vinegar.

    Reply
    • Avatar for Hank ShawHank Shaw says

      February 14, 2023 at 8:47 am

      Cinnamon: Yep, you’re overthinking it. 🙂 Use whatever vinegar you like. Sherry vinegar is brownish and mellow, which is why I like it. If you have malt vinegar, that might work.

      Reply
  3. Avatar for Patrick DarbyPatrick Darby says

    May 20, 2022 at 7:07 am

    I tried this recipe with 5 quail quartered and I have to admit it was simple and delicious. I also added gold potatoes and carrots to make it more hardy and it came out perfect. The potatoes did absorb most of the liquid so add more water/sherry if you want some extra sauce. Excellent recipe would recommend!

    Reply
  4. Avatar for Mark LedebuhrMark Ledebuhr says

    February 1, 2022 at 7:53 pm

    Nice, easy way to cook rabbit. House smells wonderful! It was a hit, even with a lifelong rabbit-hater! added some carrots and mushrooms the last 30 min to make it a bit more of a stew. It worked!

    Reply
  5. Avatar for KateKate says

    January 27, 2022 at 1:53 pm

    I have never eaten rabbit before, let alone served it to my family.
    I bartered a duck for a rabbit, so then what?
    Hank is my go-to guy for things like this.
    I chose this recipe for it’s unadulterated simplicity and was NOT disappointed. We devoured every morsel.
    We thickened the juices with a bit of cornstarch at the end and served it over buttery herbed rice (which made me think that the juices would be divinely lovely for risotto) with a simple side of spring greens and a balsamic vinaigrette.
    Thanks again Hank!

    Reply
  6. Avatar for Bil HaqBil Haq says

    January 11, 2022 at 10:12 am

    Hi Hank:
    Can I substitute part white wine instead of water in the spanish rabbit receipe. I love the wine background umami.
    Bil

    Reply
    • Avatar for Hank ShawHank Shaw says

      January 17, 2022 at 9:57 am

      Bil: Absolutely.

      Reply
  7. Avatar for CalinCalin says

    January 1, 2022 at 5:52 pm

    My first dish for 2022. The rabbit turned out so good that only a small fraction is left. Simple ingredients and procedure, but flavors are out of this world. I also grow my own garlic, Romanian Red porcelain is my favorite but there are several other types equally good.

    Reply
  8. Avatar for LAUREN K ALLENLAUREN K ALLEN says

    September 8, 2021 at 4:03 pm

    Eat this rabbit recipe all the time. I’ve crock potted it and slow braised in a cast iron dutch oven. It is such a perfect melding of garlic and rabbit.

    Reply
  9. Avatar for Lilia WallLilia Wall says

    February 22, 2021 at 10:18 am

    Hello,
    My son is a hunter, and he got a rabbit. I want to make this recipe. But I don’a have a dutch oven or earthenware. Can I use a crock pot instead?

    Reply
    • Avatar for Hank ShawHank Shaw says

      February 23, 2021 at 9:53 am

      Lilia: Absolutely you can.

      Reply
  10. Avatar for ShaneShane says

    January 5, 2021 at 5:57 pm

    Great recipe and a regular throughout the winter during snowshoe hare season!

    Reply
  11. Avatar for Barbara S ReichBarbara S Reich says

    November 7, 2020 at 2:39 pm

    Very good, and like many braised dishes, even better the next day. I took all the little bits of meat from the neck and some small leftover pieces, chopped them up, threw them back in the liquid and turned it into pasta sauce.

    Reply
  12. Avatar for KrisKris says

    August 31, 2019 at 2:03 pm

    This was amazing with roasted delicata squash, mashed potatoes sprinkled with the roasted squash seeds, and a cold beer! Substituted sherry for the sherry vinegar and we were out of peas; otherwise, followed the recipe to a tee. This was fantastic!

    Reply
  13. Avatar for LAUREN ALLENLAUREN ALLEN says

    July 14, 2019 at 1:50 pm

    A truly wonderful dish.

    Reply
  14. Avatar for Keith McGowanKeith McGowan says

    February 4, 2019 at 2:23 pm

    Just made this and subbed squirrel… DELICIOUS, will be trying it again in the near future with rabbit.

    Reply
  15. Avatar for HarryHarry says

    December 25, 2018 at 9:58 pm

    I made this recipe for my Mom on Christmas using a Fryer Rabbit our local butcher ordered for us, and it was simply excellent. I appreciate the subtlety of the flavors and the precision of this recipe–regular unroasted garlic, or browning the meat/onions, would have indeed overwhelmed the rabbit.

    Thank you for the informed and inspired recipe.

    Reply
  16. Avatar for NikkiNikki says

    August 5, 2018 at 12:47 pm

    What temperature do you cook at??

    Reply
    • Avatar for Hank ShawHank Shaw says

      August 7, 2018 at 3:10 pm

      Nikki: It’s on the stovetop.

      Reply
  17. Avatar for UplandMannUplandMann says

    January 13, 2018 at 3:38 pm

    Nice flavor but Do Not make this in a crockpot since the cloves of garlic will virtually melt away unless added for just the last couple of hour at low temp. We had this with a bed of mash potatoes with the rabbit and peas over the top to get all that good sauce. Next attempt will be complete stove top.

    Reply
  18. Avatar for JesseJesse says

    January 9, 2018 at 4:40 pm

    What temp should this be cooked at?

    Reply
  19. Avatar for NickNick says

    November 27, 2017 at 9:42 pm

    Wow. Scored my first rabbit yesterday and prepared it for a friend and myself tonight. I’m better on the grill than the kitchen bit that may have changed a little tonight. I owe you and this recipe for one of the best meals I’ve made in my life.

    Reply
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Hank Shaw holding a rod and reel in the American River

Hi, my name is Hank Shaw; I’m a James Beard Award-winning author and chef. I started this site back in 2007 to help you get the most out of all things wild: fish, game, edible wild plants and mushrooms. I also write cookbooks, have a website dedicated to the intersection of food and nature, and do a podcast, too. If it’s wild, you’ll find it here. Hope you enjoy the site!

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