How long should the rabbit roast?

1–1½ hours in a good hot oven, with constant basting. With preparations, count on around 3 hours total.

What does the stuffing consist of?

Finely chopped suet (cleaned of membranes and sinews) mixed with 125 g grated white bread, chopped parsley, lemon zest, grated nutmeg, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons milk. The stuffing is placed inside the rabbit, which is sewn shut.

Why is paper wrapped around the rabbit?

A white paper buttered with cold butter is wrapped around the rabbit to keep the meat from drying out or burning. The paper is set aside during the basting, and removed a quarter hour before the roast is done so it can brown.

Where does the recipe come from?

From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (1914), page 314.

Roast rabbit I

Name: Roast rabbit I
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 2 h 20 min
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Norwegian
Ingredients: 1 pcs rabbit (skinned and cleaned); 125 g grated white bread; 60 g beef suet (can be replaced with butter); 1 tsp chopped parsley; 0.25 tsp grated lemon zest; 1 pinch grated nutmeg; 2 tsp salt; 0.25 tsp pepper; 2 tbsp milk; 40 g butter or fat (for roasting)

Roast rabbit I from Erken's Stor kokebok (1914): a whole rabbit stuffed with a mixture of chopped suet, grated white bread, parsley, lemon zest, nutmeg, salt, pepper and milk, sewn up, wrapped in buttered paper and roasted 1–1.5 hours in a hot oven with constant basting. Served with a brown, sharp sauce.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 314 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

Rabbit meat was highlighted by Schønberg Erken as a cheap and easily digestible food, and in the chapter introduction she compares it to beef and chicken. The rabbit was often placed in sour milk or vinegar water before cooking to mellow the flavor.

How to make it

1
Prepare the rabbit
Rinse the skinned and cleaned rabbit well in cold water and dry it. The rabbit can first sit 1–2 hours in sour milk or vinegar water.
2
Make the stuffing
Clean the suet of membranes and sinews and chop it fine. Mix with parsley, grated white bread, salt, pepper, lemon zest, nutmeg and milk.
3
Stuff and sew shut
Stuff the rabbit with the mixture and sew or tie it firmly shut.
4
Wrap and roast
Butter a white paper (parchment/baking paper) with cold butter and wrap it around the rabbit. Place the rabbit in a roasting pan with butter or fat and roast in a good hot oven (about 200 °C (390 °F)) for 1–1½ hours. Baste constantly with the roasting fat and set the paper aside during the basting.
5
Finish
Take off the paper for the last quarter hour and sprinkle a very little salt over the rabbit so it turns nicely brown.
6
Serve
Serve with a brown, sharp sauce.

Changes from the original

Amounts are converted to modern measures (dl, tsp, tbsp, grams), suet can be swapped for butter or fat, and "paper buttered with butter" is described as baking/parchment paper. The method is divided into numbered steps in modern Norwegian.

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Frequently asked questions

How long should the rabbit roast?: 1–1½ hours in a good hot oven, with constant basting. With preparations, count on around 3 hours total.
What does the stuffing consist of?: Finely chopped suet (cleaned of membranes and sinews) mixed with 125 g grated white bread, chopped parsley, lemon zest, grated nutmeg, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons milk. The stuffing is placed inside the rabbit, which is sewn shut.
Why is paper wrapped around the rabbit?: A white paper buttered with cold butter is wrapped around the rabbit to keep the meat from drying out or burning. The paper is set aside during the basting, and removed a quarter hour before the roast is done so it can brown.
Where does the recipe come from?: From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (1914), page 314.

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