A recipe: rabbit "Javier's Style"

    It's been a long time since I posted a recipe. Also, it is a good opportunity for me to practice written English and for a few of my readers to practice their reading skills. So, said and done, here is my world-famous rabbit recipe "Javier's style". I accompany the text with some spring images (despite the fact that these days it seems that we are in August).

    This a recipe I learnt many years ago, from my mother, but I’ve added some significant improvements (in my view).

    First of all, you will need a good rabbit, properly cut into pieces. This is a problem today because of the hatred felt by butchers against these poor animals. Perhaps this is something required to be an officially recognized butcher, but the fact is that all of them cut the rabbit with furious blows and without any respect. This is something scientifically proven by my own studies. As a consequence, they break the bones into hundreds of little pieces that you will find in your mouth when eating.

    So the best way to start is to cut the rabbit at home, taking advantage of the joints and trying not to destroy the food by mixing it with ground bones.

    Add salt and ground pepper as desired and spread it on the rabbit pieces. It is also convenient to put a little sprinkled flour. I'll tell you the reason for that in the next paragraph.

    Use a frying pan with plenty of oil (of course, extra virgin olive oil) to lightly fry the rabbit pieces. It is about sealing the meat, not frying it completely, because if we do, it would be dry at the end of cooking. The reason for using a bit of flour is to prevent the oil from attacking you when frying. The poor rabbits cause hot oil to spray violently onto unsuspecting cooks. In my opinion, it is a subtle revenge against butchers.

    Reserve the rabbit pieces in a saucepan. While you fry the rabbit, roast three cloves of garlic over the ceramic hob. You should not peel the garlic. Choose a low temperature (3 on a scale of 10) for about five minutes.

    Remove the excess oil that would have remained in the pan and add about 150 g of chopped onion (a quarter if it is large or half if it is small), a few pieces of green pepper, six balls of black pepper and a bay leaf. Add it all over the impatiently waiting rabbit, along with the whole peeled garlic cloves.

    The next step is important and must be followed carefully. Heat the frying pan and add half a glass of brandy and flambé it. Be careful to turn off the extractor fan because if you don't you can burn not only the rabbit but also the rest of the kitchen and maybe the house.

    Then add a little water. How much? Well, as my mother used to say, "as much as the stew asks you to." The most normal thing is that you do not hear anything, so add half a glass. If the rabbit talks to you, it's probably because you've drunk the rest of the brandy, which wasn't in the recipe. If this is the case, the most reasonable thing is to turn off the ceramic hob, take a nap and order a pizza when you wake up if (unexpectedly) you don't have a hangover.

    If everything has gone well so far, close the pot with the lid and let it cook gently for forty minutes or so (it depends on the pot and the temperature).

    This stew can be eaten hot or allowed to cool. The next day it will be even tastier.

    Enjoy your meal !