Braised Rabbit Ragu with Pappardelle

Cook Time 2 hours

Servings 4

Ingredients

400g pappardelle pasta 

Freshly grated parmesan, to serve 

3 sprigs of parsley, finely chopped

Braised Rabbit

3 tbsp olive oil

1 rabbit, jointed (ask your butcher to do this)

Plain flour, for dusting 

1 onion, finely chopped

1 celery stick, finely diced

1 small fennel bulb, finely chopped 

1 tbsp tomato paste

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 sprig rosemary, chopped

Pinch of saffron

½ tsp chilli flakes 

¾ cup white wine

500ml chicken stock

Salt and pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 160°C.

Season the rabbit pieces with salt and pepper and then dust with flour. Heat oil in a heavy-based casserole pot over medium-high heat and brown the rabbit on all sides until golden, remove and set aside.

Now add the onion, celery and fennel and cook gently for 8–10 minutes until softened. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, rosemary, saffron and chilli flakes and cook for a minute until fragrant.

Pour in the wine to deglaze the pan, scraping up any browned bits. Simmer for a minute, then add the stock. Return rabbit pieces and any juices from the plate. Turn to a low heat and cover, cook in the oven for 1.5-2.5 hours or until the meat is tender and falls easily off the bone.

Remove rabbit pieces. Shred meat from bones and discard bones. Return the meat and toss it through the sauce.

Cook pappardelle in salted boiling water. Once al dente, toss pasta through sauce and add a splash of cooking water. Keep tossing and add parmesan and parsley.