Butchering Rabbits

[NoTrespassing]

Hi All,
Well, it's the first butchering day of the summer for me today. I'm not really looking forward to it, but I've only got 3 to do.
It's really just a warmup for things to come. We don't breed until spring to lessen the chores over the winter. The next round of butchering will be 14 in a couple of weeks and then another 7 after that. Then I suppose we'll have 4 more litters later this summer for a total of around 50 for the year.

This is only the 2nd yr. for us raising rabbits. They're Californias and gestation is 30 days. We clean em at about 11 weeks. We really like the meat but I'm trying to come up with a way to grill em without drying it out so much. I'm up for suggestions.

Is anybody else raising rabbits for the freezer?

Kevin

 

[Bird]

Of course, I'm not raising rabbits anymore, but did for a few years. The most I ever had to dress in one day was 18. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif And that was the worst part of raising rabbits. Of course, being in a different part of the country and climate, I used a different breeding cycle; raised them in Fall, Winter, and Spring and let them rest in the heat of the Summer. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[MossRoad]

<font color="blue">We really like the meat but I'm trying to come up with a way to grill em without drying it out so much. </font>

We use this method for grilling chicken breasts(and everybody knows... rabbit tastes like chicken).

Get a large pot of water boiling. Dump the chicken pieces in for 10 minutes. Then remove and dunk into large bowl of favorite BBQ sauce. Pre-heat the grill so that the grate is very hot. Make sure it is clean with a wire brush. Dip a rolled up paper towel in olive oil and rub it on the grill just before putting the chicken on... (if your a dang fool, spray it with pam... I recommend turning off the flames for that part...poof!) This keeps it from sticking real nice. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Wait a couple of minutes and use tongs and a spatula to dunk the chicken in the sauce again and put the other side down on the grill. Repeat several times until it is hot all the way through(use a thermometer set for rabbit). This process usually results in a nice thick layer of cooked but not burned sauce on the chicken and it is cooked all the way through, but not dry. Try it on some chicken to see if you like it then try it on a piece of rabbit and tell us how it worked.

 

[dmccarty]

NoTresspassing,

Have you tried to brine the meat first? I have not brined
and cooked Bugs Bunny but I have done it with turkey and
shrimp. I swear brining is the best way to prep shrimp.

Here is a recipe from the Food TV channel's show, Good Eats
with Alton Brown. Its the best cooking show I have ever
seen. The link is for the turkey. I noticed Emeril had a
recipe as well.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_8389,00.html

The reason I'm thinking this might work is that the brining
pull moisture in to the meat from the brine. If the brine has
been "flavored" that should be moved into the meat as well.
So this might keep the meat from drying out. You could also
just grill enough to get the surface of the meat cooked and
marked, cover and finish in the oven.

I'm sure The Joy of Cooking would have more techniques as
well.

Lets us know what you do...
Dan McCarty

 

[DavidJ]

Try this. Open a can of your favorite beer and set it on the grate then place the meat around it. as it cooks the liquid will evaporate causing steam which will keep the meat moist and add flavor. It also works to use a can of water and if you season it the seasoning will be imparted to the meat as well.

Remember that if you forget to open the can, it will open itself violently and possibly the grill (Not a good thing) /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[MossRoad]

So the weekend's coming up quickly. You gonna cook some rabbit and let us know how things turned out? I'm getting hungry reading this post. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[NoTrespassing]

Mossroad Dave, Well we cooked one up last night per yer instructions and I must say that boiling first helped out quite a bit. It was much more moist than the usual grilled rabbit and quite tasty. Thanks for the tip. I shoulda thought of that myself since thats how I cook pork ribs but it never crossed my mind.
I've got quite a few to butcher next weekend and I'm planning on grinding a lot of it. Anybody got any tips on how to get it off the bone for grinding and freezing?

Well, I took the day off today and the wife and I are heading out for a 6:30AM horse ride! Have a nice weekend folks.

Kevin
http://www.geocities.com/kevin_usa_us/home.html

 

[MossRoad]

Glad it was good. I made some boneless pork ribs last week that were awsome. I bought them fresh, put them in a gallon zip lock bag with a bunch of KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce. I let them marinate in that for an hour or so, then tossed them in the freezer. We pulled them out a few days later and let them thaw all day in a tupperware container. That evening I fired up the grill and got a stainless steel grill wok (with holes in it) heated up. Sprayed PAM on the wok and tossed on the ribs. Seared them for a few minutes on each side, then I put it on one side of the grill with the burner under it turned off, so it cooked indirectly. Otherwise the flames would eventually burn the meat. Lowered the heat. I turned them every 5 or 10 minutes for about an hour. With about 5 minutes to go, I cut up a fresh pineapple into 1 inch thick slices. I oiled up the hot side of the grill, turned up the heat, brushed the pineapple with KC Masterpiece and grilled them for about a minute or two on each side. Had that with baked potatoes(would have preferred white rice, but was outnumbered 3 to 1). Good eating was had by all!!! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif