Roast Saddle of Hare with Grapes in Brandy

By corlear

Râble de Lièvre Jean-sans-peur

The bold Duke of Burgundy, nicknamed Jean-sans-peur, earned this title by gaining possession of Paris for a brief spell in the 15th century; this city then represented the government of France. The Duke soon paid for this fine prize with his life, but his name has lived on in the splendid dish that is still served by the old farming families of Burgundy.

Ingredients

• 2 oz fresh pork fat
• 1 young hare (3-4 lb)
• 4 shallots
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 carrots
• 2 onions
• 10 black peppercorns
• 1 sprig each thyme, rosemary
• 11 pints dry white burgundy
• 8 oz large green seedless grapes
• 2 tablespoons brandy
• 4 oz streaky bacon
• salt
• black pepper
• 2 medium sized egg yolks
• 1 pint double cream

Preparation

Step 1

Put the pork fat in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Have the hare paunched, skinned and the saddle prepared for roasting. Reserve the head, trim off half of the ribcage and the belly flaps, and use for hare soup. Strictly speaking, the saddle only is used for this dish but the upper part of the hind legs can be included to make a young hare serve 6 people.

Cut the fat into long strips like giant matchsticks and lard the meat in the following way. With a sharp pointed knife pierce the meat of the saddle from tail-end to neck on either side of the back bone. Twist the knife once to form a channel, withdraw it, insert a long strip of fat and push it in fully with a skewer. Make two channels in each thigh along the length and lard them in the same way. Place the saddle and thighs in a deep earthenware dish just large enough to hold them and prepare the marinade.

Peel and coarsely chop the shallots and garlic, peel and finely slice the carrots and onions and strew these vegetables over the hare. Crush the peppercorns and add these to the dish with the herbs. Pour the wine down the sides of the dish; it should just cover the meat. Cover the dish and leave in a cool place for 3 days, turning the meat each day. Do not refrigerate.

Heat the oven to 200°C, 400°F, Gas 6.

Peel the grapes and put them into a small dish. Pour the brandy over them, cover and set aside.

Cut the bacon into lardons the size of the little finger. Drain the hare, strain and reserve the marinade, place saddle and thighs closely together in a heavy metal baking dish, arrange the lardons around them and cover with buttered foil. Roast for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 190°C, 375°F, Gas 5, and roast for a further 45 minutes or until the meat is tender when pierced with a sharp knife.

Remove the meat and arrange on a heated serving dish with the saddle cut into 4 serving pieces. Cover tightly with foil and put back into the oven with the heat turned off. Put the grapes into the oven to heat through.

Remove the lardons from the baking dish, slowly pour off all fat, reserving the meat juices, add 1/2 pint of the reserved marinade and over low heat scrape up the meat residue from the bottom of the pan with the back of a fork, working it into the juices. Add the brandy from the grapes, season and simmer for a few moments. Beat the egg yolks into the cream and season lightly. Draw the dish from the heat when bubbling fast, add a ladleful of sauce to the cream, beat well and return this mixture slowly to the baking dish stirring constantly. Replace over minimum heat and stir until the sauce thickens slightly. Do not boil.

Pour the sauce over the hare, garnish with the grapes and serve immediately with boiled rice. Serve the same wine as that used for the marinade.