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Articles and Products of History
Rabbit for Dinner?
If you lived in the 18th century in the United States, you had rabbit
served for a meal. They were considered game, or sustenance, and were
never considered a pet to the colonial people. When deciding how far a
rabbit would go, it was generally considered that one pound of rabbit
would feed one person. The cottontail rabbits, which were the smallest,
generally weighed about one and one half pounds. Jack rabbits generally
weighed about 3 pounds, and the Belgian hare ranged in weight from four
to ten pounds. Here are some favorite rabbit recipes:
Roasted Rabbit: Stuff the cleansed, dressed rabbit with a bread or sausage
stuffing. Lace it up like you would a chicken to hold it together. Brush
the skin with melted fat. Roast over a spit fire, or in a wood burning
oven. Baste frequently. You should cook 30 minutes per pound of rabbit.
If a tender skin is preferred to a crispy skin, place in pot with a lid
in wood stove for last 30 minutes.
Hasenpfeffer: Wash and cleanse rabbit. Place it in a bowl of vinegar
cider, water, onion and other seasonings to taste. Cover and let stand
in a cool place for 3-8 days. Remove from the vinegar and braise. Braising
is the method of browning meat evenly on all sides in an uncovered pan.
If the meat is lean, you can add some fat drippings. Cooking is done slow
to prevent toughness.
If rabbit was not to your liking, then you could dine on fish, turkey,
venison, squirrel, goose, ham, beef, chicken, liver, kidneys, beef heart,
pork or lamb tongue, or wild duck. Children usually liked what their mother
prepared. There was no other option. Children knew that they shouldn’t
get emotionally tied to any of the animals that were raised on their farm,
or that they saw scampering through the woods.
Further Reading
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