Rabbit Cacciatore Recipe (2024)

Dinners
Rabbit
Italian

This cacciatore recipe features rabbit instead of chicken for something new! Brown rabbit in olive oil, then braise with onions, garlic, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, and herbs. It’s a true hunter’s-style stew.

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

Learn about Simply Recipes'Editorial Process

Updated February 04, 2022

7 ratings

Rabbit vs. Chicken Cacciatore

People often compare the taste of rabbit to chicken. I think it has the texture of chicken, particularly of chicken thighs or legs, but it really doesn't taste like chicken. It has its own wonderful taste.

Years ago it was much more common to cook rabbit, and easier to find it at a butcher shop. But these days, in the era of chicken and supermarkets, you likely need to go to a specialty market to find some.

This rabbit recipe is an easy to make cacciatore, or a "hunter style" stew, which is typically made with either chicken or rabbit.

What Is Cacciatore?

Cacciatore is a traditional Italian dish that's similar to a stew, but it's made with whole pieces of boned meat instead of deboned cubed meat. In Italian, cacciatore means "hunter." Usually made from chicken or rabbit, a traditional cacciatore often includes onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and herbs.

Where to Buy Rabbit Meat

If your grocery store meat department doesn't have rabbit meat, try a butcher's shop or a farmers market. There are also several sources of rabbit meat online that can deliver frozen rabbit, already cut into pieces, to your doorstep.

How to Store This Recipe

Like most stews, this dish tastes really good on day 2 or 3, so feel free to make it ahead of time. Refrigerate cooled rabbit cacciatore, tightly covered, for 4 to 5 days.

Freeze cooled rabbit cacciatore in a freezer-safe zipper bag or container for up to 3 months. Defrost it overnight in the refrigerator.

More Rabbit Recipes

Rabbit in Mustard Sauce
Rabbit Stew with Mushrooms
Rabbit Braised in Belgian Ale
Braised Rabbit with Prunes

From the Editors Of Simply Recipes

Rabbit Cacciatore

Prep Time25 mins

Cook Time50 mins

Total Time75 mins

Servings4to 5 servings

Whole rabbit is much more difficult to part out than a whole chicken. If you can, have your butcher cut it for you.

Recipe adapted from a chicken recipe by Georgeanne Brennan.

Ingredients

1 (2 1/4) pound rabbit, cut into 6 to 8 pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves (or 1 tablespoon dried)
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (or Wondra flour works great)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup chopped mushrooms
3 cups chopped, very ripe tomatoes (or canned plum tomatoes)
2 red bell peppers, seeded, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 bay leaf
16 salt-cured olives, black or green, pitted

Method

Before you start, cut the rabbit into pieces, or have your butcher do it for you. Hank Shaw has an excellent guide here: How to Cut up a Rabbit.

Brown the rabbit pieces:
Sprinkle the rabbit pieces generously with salt and pepper. Rub half of the thyme leaves into the pieces, then sprinkle with flour to lightly coat.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium high. Place the rabbit pieces in the pan in a single layer. Do not stir.
Cook for 2 to 3 minutes on one side until lightly browned, then turn the pieces and brown on the other side for a minute or two more. Remove the rabbit pieces to a dish to set aside.
Add the onions and then garlic, bell pepper, mushrooms, rosemary, and thyme:
Reduce the heat to medium. Add onions to the pan, cook for 1 minute. Then add garlic, bell pepper, and mushrooms, cook for a couple minutes more. Add the rosemary and the remaining thyme.
Add the rabbit back into the pan with tomatoes and bay leaf:
Reduce heat to medium low; cover the pan and cook for 35 minutes.
Add the olives:
Uncover the pan and add the olives. Leave the cover off.
Boil off excess liquid:
Increase heat to high and cook for several minutes to boil off excess moisture and reduce the sauce.
When the liquid has reduced by half, check the seasoning, add salt or pepper to taste, remove from heat and serve.
Serve with rice, pasta, or potatoes.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
552	Calories
24g	Fat
16g	Carbs
65g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4to 5
Amount per serving
Calories	552
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 24g	31%
Saturated Fat 6g	31%
Cholesterol 176mg	59%
Sodium 237mg	10%
Total Carbohydrate 16g	6%
Dietary Fiber 3g	12%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 65g
Vitamin C 57mg	287%
Calcium 84mg	6%
Iron 7mg	38%
Potassium 1031mg	22%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.