Rabbit And Wild Mushroom Ragout Recipes

BEST-EVER WILD MUSHROOM RAGU

Steps:

• Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large, heavy-bottomed pot (such as a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat. Once hot & shimmering, add half of the mushrooms. Stir to coat the mushrooms in the oil then cook, stirring occasionally, until deeply browned & golden, about 8-10 minutes. Once browned, season with a good pinch of kosher salt & ground black pepper as desired. Transfer the browned mushrooms to a plate & set aside. Repeat with the remaining mushrooms.
• Meanwhile, as the fresh mushrooms brown, reconstitute the dried porcini mushrooms. Add the vegetable broth & dried porcini mushrooms to a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil & reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer 10 minutes to reconstitute the mushrooms. Use a slotted spoon or spider strainer to remove the mushrooms from the pot, allowing all excess liquid to drain back into the pot. Remove the porcini-infused stock from the heat & set aside for later use. Transfer reconstituted porcini mushrooms to a cutting board & finely chop. Set aside.
• Once the fresh mushrooms are browned, cook the aromatics. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil to the same pot used to brown the mushrooms. Reduce heat to medium. Once hot & shimmering, add the onions. Season with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt & ground black pepper, as desired. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened & fragrant, about 5-6 minutes. Add the chopped porcini mushrooms from Step 2 & cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the moisture is cooked out, about 1-2 minutes. Add in the garlic & fresh thyme. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes longer.
• While the aromatics soften, it's a great time to get your pasta going. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is cooked to al dente according to package directions. Carefully dip a liquid measuring cup into the pot, reserving about 1 cup of the starchy pasta water, and set aside. Carefully drain the pasta - do NOT rinse it!
• Increasing the heat to medium-high, pour the dry vermouth into the pot. Stir constantly, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits that may have formed at the bottom of the pot. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the vermouth is almost completely absorbed into the aromatics.
• Add the porcini-infused stock from Step 3 to the pot, along with the grated parmesan. Stir to combine. Bring the ragu to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer 5-7 minutes, until thickened slightly. Stir in the heavy cream & the browned mushrooms from Step 1. Taste & adjust seasonings as desired.
• Add the cooked pasta to the pot with the wild mushroom ragu sauce, tossing to coat. The wild mushroom ragu should evenly coat the pasta. Add in some of the reserved pasta water if the ragu needs to loosen up a little; add in an extra handful of parmesan if it needs to tighten up a little. Cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, allowing the pasta to meld with & absorb some of the wild mushroom ragu.
• Portion the wild mushroom ragu pasta into individual pasta bowls, topping with additional grated parmesan & chopped fresh herbs as desired. For an extra-luxe finishing touch, I like to finish each bowl with the lightest drizzle of black truffle oil. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

BRAISED RABBIT WITH WILD MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• In a large, heavy skillet, melt the butter over medium heat; add in the rabbit pieces (in batches, if necessary), brown on all sides, and transfer to a plate.
• Add in the onion, mushrooms, and garlic; cook/stir, until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes.
• Add in the wine and continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes.
• Add in the tomatoes, beef broth, tarragon, and chevril; season with salt and pepper; bring to a boil, and let boil until the sauce begins to thicken, about 5-7 minutes.
• Remove pan from heat.
• Arrange rabbit pieces in a large, greased baking dish, pour the sauce over the top; cover and bake until the rabbit is fork tender and the sauce nicely thickened, 30-35 minutes.

WILD MUSHROOM RAGOUT

Steps:

• Place a large, deep skillet over medium heat and add the butter and oil. Add the carrots, onion, celery and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Clean the mushrooms, trimming or removing tough stems depending on the variety, and cutting any that are very large into smaller pieces. Add the mushrooms to the skillet and continue to cook until the mushrooms are soft and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
• Add the stock, sherry, bay leaf and tomato paste and simmer gently until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Season the mushrooms to taste with salt and pepper, stir in the savory and parsley and transfer the mixture to a casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with the cheese and bake until the cheese is melted and lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately with buttered pasta or rice on the side.

WILD MUSHROOM RAGù

Steps:

• Soak the porcini in 3 cups hot water until very soft, about 30 minutes.
• Coat a large wide saucepan generously with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Add the onion and red pepper and season with salt; cook until the onion is soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more.
• Add the fresh mushrooms, season with salt, and sauté until soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the wine and continue cooking until reduced by half, 5 to 6 minutes more.
• Using your hand, scoop the porcini out of the soaking water, being careful not to disturb the water-you want the crud to stay settled. Put the porcini in a food processor, ladle in about 1/2 cup of the soaking liquid, and purée to a very smooth paste.
• Add the porcini paste, 2 cups of the porcini water, and 1 cup of the stock to the pan; toss in the thyme bundle and the bay leaf. Taste and season with salt if needed. Bring the liquid to a boil (BTB) and reduce to a simmer (RTS). Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, adding more stock if needed; this sauce should be saucy but not soupy. Remove the thyme bundle and bay leaf before serving. Serve tossed with pasta or gnocchi or over polenta.

ITALIAN-STYLE BRAISED RABBIT WITH ROSEMARY AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Cut the rabbit into 9 pieces (or ask your butcher to) as follows: with a sharp cleaver, cut the saddle (center portion) into 3 pieces, leaving the kidneys attached. Cut the front portion (front legs) in half through the backbone. Chop each hind leg into 2 pieces. Reserve the liver and heart to sauté as a snack.
• Heat .25 inch of olive oil in a Dutch oven or deep, wide heavy skillet over medium heat. Season the rabbit pieces with salt and pepper, then dust lightly with flour. Lightly brown the rabbit for about 3 minutes on both sides, working in batches. Drain on kitchen towels, then transfer to a baking dish in one layer. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Pour off the used oil, wipe out the pan and add 2 tablespoons fresh oil. Heat to medium-high, add the onions and cook till soft, about 5 minutes. Add the leek, garlic, rosemary and mushrooms. Season generously with salt and pepper, and add red pepper flakes to taste. Cook for 2 minutes more, stirring.
• Add the chopped tomatoes and wine, and let the mixture reduce for 1 minute. Add the broth, bring to a simmer, taste and adjust seasonings.
• Ladle the mixture evenly over the rabbit. Cover the dish, and bake for 1 hour. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

MUSHROOM RAGOûT

Steps:

• Place the dried mushrooms in a pyrex measuring cup or a bowl and pour on 2 cups boiling water. Let soak 30 minutes, while you prepare the other ingredients. Place a strainer over a bowl, line it with cheesecloth or paper towels, and drain the mushrooms. Save the liquid. Squeeze the mushrooms over the strainer and rinse until they are free of sand. Chop coarsely.
• Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet or a wide saucepan and add the shallots or onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, until fragrant, then add the fresh mushrooms, rosemary and thyme, and turn up the heat slightly. Cook until the mushrooms begin to sweat, then add a generous pinch of salt. Stir for about 5 minutes over medium-high heat as the mushrooms continue to soften and sweat. Add the flour and continue to cook the mushrooms, stirring, until they have softened a little more and you can no longer see the flour, about 2 minutes. Add the reconstituted dried mushrooms and the wine and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down and glazes the mushrooms, about 5 minutes. Stir in the dried mushroom soaking liquid, bring to a simmer, add salt to taste, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the mushrooms are thoroughly tender and fragrant and the surrounding broth is thick, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in some freshly ground pepper and the parsley, taste and adjust salt.

RABBIT RAGU WITH PAPPARDELLE

Steps:

• Pat the rabbit pieces dry and season with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the oil and brown the pieces, working in batches if needed to avoid crowding. Transfer to a plate.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the anchovy (if you choose) and mash it until it dissolves into the oil. Add the onion, carrots and celery, stirring until soft, about 5 minutes. Then add the red-pepper flakes, garlic and tomato paste, stirring for another minute. Deglaze the pan with the wine, turn the heat to high and boil to burn off the alcohol, about 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes, broth, bay leaves and thyme. Return the rabbit pieces to the pot, spacing them evenly so they are partly covered by the liquid. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the rabbit is falling off the bone, about 2 hours. Turn the pieces at least once.
• Turn off the heat and discard the thyme and bay leaves. Remove the rabbit from the sauce and let cool; then pull the meat from the bones. Shred some pieces and leave others large. Return the meat to the pan and simmer the sauce until thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the butter, piece by piece. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pappardelle until al dente. Before draining, save a cup of the pasta water. Toss the pappardelle with the sauce over low heat, adding pasta water as necessary if the sauce is too thick. Divide among pasta bowls and top with the grated cheese.

WILD MUSHROOM RAGOUT

Steps:

• In a large heavy bottomed pot over high temperature heat the oil until very hot.
• Add the mushrooms all at one, and saute on high until they release their liquid, stirring occasionally.
• When the liquid has evaporated from the bottom of the pot, add the wine and chopped herbs, stir, and saute until the wine and liquid is almost completely reduced.
• Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, and serve hot.
• Note: this dish would also be tasty with a combination of other mushrooms, such as porcini and morels!