Jugged Hare

Jugged Hare can be cooked and then stored in kilner jars and reheated when required during those chilly nights of autumn and winter.



Ingredients:

1 x Hare

8 x Small Shallots

150g x Lardons

2 x Carrots

2 x Celery Stalks

1 x Bouquet Garni

1 x Large Knob of Butter

1 x Tablespoon Plain Flour

1 x Cup of Port

1 x Zest of Lemon

Salt & Pepper


Cut your hare into manageable pieces and coat in seasoned flour, brown and place in a large casserole dish. Cover the meat with water add the lardons, shallots, diced carrots, diced celery, lemon zest and the bouquet garni and cook for 2 – 3 hrs at 160c or until the meat is tender enough to fall from the bone. Now melt the butter in a skillet and add the flour, pour in the port and thicken and adding some of the cooking juice along with more salt & pepper to season. Fill your kilner jars and top up with more of the cooking juices if necessary. Serve with potatoes or bread and red cabbage.

When I was a gamekeeper many years ago, we used to harvest the hares when they numbers became too great in one area and where they were being a pest to the local farmers, it was on these occasions that I looked forward to this dish. Now I would prefer to watch them through my binoculars or better still photograph them boxing prior to mating. If you are lucky enough to have hare to eat then this dish is certainly worth trying, I recall having it served to me on shoot days when they were plenty.

Bon Appetite!