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grilled and marinated rabbit (coniglio marinato alla griglia)
© David Loftus

grilled and marinated rabbit (coniglio marinato alla griglia)

servings
Serves 2
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method


I’ve written this recipe to be cooked on the barbecue, because the flavor will be amazing, but it also works really well when roasted in the oven at 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6. If you cook it in the oven, turn the pieces of rabbit several times to ensure even color and cooking. If you cook it on the barbecue, you’ll need 5 wooden or metal skewers (soak wooden ones before you use them). Whether barbecuing or roasting, here are your rough timings:

Belly: 25 to 30 minutes.
Kidneys and liver: 4 minutes.
Saddle and ribs: 15 to 20 minutes.
Legs and shoulder: 35 to 40 minutes.

Put your rabbit pieces into a bowl. Using a pestle and mortar, or a liquidizer, bash or whiz up the thyme and rosemary leaves to a pulp, then add the garlic cloves and bash or whiz again. Stir in 8 tablespoons of olive oil, the lemon zest and juice and the honey, and pour this over the rabbit. Put the meat to one side and let it come to room temperature while you light your barbecue.

Now I’m going to talk about flavour. Get a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme and tie them together like a little brush. Each time you turn the meat, dab it with a little of the marinade to give you a lovely encrusted layer of flavour. This rabbit is going to be really tasty!

Keeping the marinade to one side, remove the pieces of meat and season with salt and pepper. Sandwich the pancetta between the 2 pieces of belly using 3 skewers. Put the legs and shoulder on the barbecue. When they’ve been cooking for 10 minutes, put the belly on. After another 10 minutes put the saddle and ribs on. Make sure you turn the meat over every so often. Look after it by controlling the temperature and basting it continuously with the marinade. Cut three-quarters of the way through each kidney and open them out like a book. Cut the liver into 4 pieces and push one piece on to each remaining skewer, followed by a kidney and more liver.

When all the pieces of meat are beautifully cooked, add your skewered bits of kidney and liver on to the barbecue and cook until golden, along with your 2 remaining slices of pancetta. After a few minutes, when the pancetta is browned, put it on top of the meat at the cooler end of the barbie. Now get your guests round the table.

You can serve the rabbit with any white beans, or roast potatoes, or grilled vegetables, or different salads – it really depends on how you feel and what the weather’s like. Just put a big bowl of your chosen accompaniment in the middle of the table and serve all the meat on a board. Lovely with a glass of white wine. Simple, honest and bloody good.


• from Jamie's Italy

ingredients


• 1 x 1.2kg/2½lb rabbit, preferably wild, jointed
• a handful of fresh thyme and rosemary, leaves picked
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• olive oil
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 4 thick slices of pancetta
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

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tried this recipe or a similar one? share your tips...
1. by Claire on Mon 15 Feb 2010 @ 10:23

A few months ago we brought some rabbits home from a hunting trip and froze them. It's summer here in Australia and I didn't fancy the usual braised rabbit, or casserole so we tried this recipe. There is a really big storm coming tonight and the wind got a bit wild so instead of cooking on the BBQ I had to retreat to the kitchen. I browned the pieces in the pan and popped them into a moderate oven using the timings you suggested. Each time I opened the oven, I basted. The flavors were awesome! I'm so pleased I have now got a summer rabbit recipe.. Thanks Mr Oliver!

2. by Jean on Mon 13 Apr 2009 @ 01:23

Jamie my boy, your recipe are too reliance on herbs and condiments, should really be using these to enhance the flavors of rabbit not covering it. I personally think that the lemon zest is ok but the juice makes the meat tough and should only be used after the meat is cook if perferred.

3. by hayley espie on Sun 23 Nov 2008 @ 21:39

hi Jamie,I'm a 3rd year chef at tafe and just love all the food you produce.Everything you do is such an insperation to me and children, all around the world i'm 27 and hope to have all the knowledge like you do. I can't wait till you come to aussie. Thank you so much!I LOVE YOU'R WORK AND I LOVE BEING A CHEF.....

4. by ross carter on Thu 09 Oct 2008 @ 18:07

alright Jamie, i've got problems with rabbit, me and my girlfriend go to Spain and Malta a hell of alot. My folks in Spain, Jenny's in Malta, every time we go, we go bonkers on rabbit, it's sotender and juicy, drives us nuts, but the rabbit we get when we return to the Isle of Wight tends to be very tough, we have tried pressure cooking it to tenderize but it's not the same, I don't want to give up on our native bunnies, but i'm out of ideas, so do us a favour, make a little note in your next book mate, so i can get the missus to eat it weekly. cheers

5. by fishface on Wed 01 Oct 2008 @ 12:34

Jaime I think what you are trying to achieve with the nation is fantastic, I am very lucky, fortunately my mother was a very good traditional (Irish) cook. so my cookery education started very early on. However, I recently bought a couple of rabbits whilst on holiday in Hampshire so im going to give this recipe a try, I also bought a piece of venison which I have tasted once & wondered if you had any tasty recipes. I have most of your books but you cover very little on these two meats no doubt through lack of demand, but can you plse add a few more in any new cookery books you might be thinking of producing. (Or I wont pass my knowledge on. Lol.) keep up the good work. Fishface x

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