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buggyracer
05-Nov-07, 12:01
as above, i know in years gone by wild rabbit was appreaciated, but in todays world of conveniance and ready meals, and with the population being more flush is eating rabbit a thing of the past? apart from being served in top eaterys as a bit of a vogue dish do folk still eat them or conisder them as food?

corgiman
05-Nov-07, 13:31
I am quite sure they do, I have never been able to myself but the smell of my grandads rabbit stew was always amazing but having pet rabbits I just couldn't bring myself to eat it. I do know that I have heard a few people say it can be hard to get now and they don't like having to pay for it by the kilo.

nikki
05-Nov-07, 13:50
I remember when i was little going out to the barn and finding dead rabbits hanging from the rafters, dad would shoot them and mum would make stew or something with them. used to hate having to eat them after seeing them in the barn.

changilass
05-Nov-07, 13:57
On the odd occassion I have been given them for free then I have eaten them and they are very tasty.

corgiman
05-Nov-07, 13:58
That said the smell of them when you clean them is something that stays with you for life yuck :eek:

Camel Spider
05-Nov-07, 14:08
Russian people still eat them, I have been working out that way and had Roast Rabbit as a main course .. didnt think much of it.

the charlatans
05-Nov-07, 16:42
we eat them regularly. Mr C used to be poor and had to shoot for his supper so to speak. And now we have them cos its a cheap low fat meat.

Rabbit Sweet and Sour is nice (Uncle Bens sauce) as is Hugh FearnlyWhittinglystall's recipe for Bunny Burgers - these are great, low in fat and pretty tasty.

If rabbit came served on a blue polystyrene tray in Tescos you probably wouldn't be as bothered as the thought of having to prepare poor wild 'Thumper' yourself.

Cattach
05-Nov-07, 17:09
as above, i know in years gone by wild rabbit was appreaciated, but in todays world of conveniance and ready meals, and with the population being more flush is eating rabbit a thing of the past? apart from being served in top eaterys as a bit of a vogue dish do folk still eat them or conisder them as food?

Great meal, eat them regularly. As they say, not unlike chicken and low in fat.

Riffman
05-Nov-07, 17:11
I would happily eat them if they would sit still longer enough...

I find them to be very tasty, no additives (apart from the cool glowing ones from up hera dounreay) and great flavour.

Very cheap if you get them yourself, especially as you can sell a tanned skin for £6 each these days!

Thumper
05-Nov-07, 17:24
I hope not [para][lol] x

Shabbychic
05-Nov-07, 17:31
Don't you listen to them Thumper. Just cover your ears and head for the hills. :lol:

grandma
05-Nov-07, 17:39
Used to eat them regularly before I was working full time and when money was scarse. Lovely in a stew and roasted. Not so many around our area now so haven't had it for years. Used to be a fair shot with the old 2.2 and latterly the air rifle. Wouldn't say no to one if I was offered it. Also partial to a bit of pheasant, grouse, venison or salmon. :D

corgiman
05-Nov-07, 23:38
pheasant mmmmmmmmm :lol:

Whitewater
05-Nov-07, 23:43
Used to eat a lot of wild rabbit in my young days. My mother for some unknown reason always used to curry them, I just grew up thinking that was the way all rabbits tasted (knew nothing about spices or cooking). I remember being over at a friends house and being asked to stay for tea, when I asked what they were having his mother said rabbit. Great, I was looking forward to it as soon as she told me. However, when it was served up and I tasted a bit, I began to argue that it was good, but not a rabbit (no curry taste). Needless to say we failed to convince each other of the origin of the food. It was only after I got home, and told my mother about it the funny tasting rabbit that she let me into the secret about her curry. I had to return and apologise to my friends mother, we all had a great laugh about it.

Julia
05-Nov-07, 23:43
Rabbit Sweet and Sour is nice (Uncle Bens sauce) as is Hugh FearnlyWhittinglystall's recipe for Bunny Burgers - these are great, low in fat and pretty tasty.

I like all kinds of meat but don't think I could stomach a 'bunny burger' [smirk].

Don't they taste bad or better at certain times of the year?

My dad went on and on about how great wabbits were and how he was brought up on them, my mum made him rabbit stew recently and the cat ended up eating it.

DeHaviLand
05-Nov-07, 23:44
Rabbit is delicious. Skinned, jointed, brushed with honey and slammed in the oven. Its why rabbits were invented!!!

corgiman
05-Nov-07, 23:47
you know thats one thing I love about living here, you can talk about these things and it is normal :lol:

connieb19
05-Nov-07, 23:49
I never knew until recently that my mam used to cook it for us when we were young and told us it was chicken. I don't think I would fancy it now if knew what I was eating. :eek:

DeHaviLand
05-Nov-07, 23:49
I like all kinds of meat but don't think I could stomach a 'bunny burger' [smirk].

Don't they taste bad or better at certain times of the year?

My dad went on and on about how great wabbits were and how he was brought up on them, my mum made him rabbit stew recently and the cat ended up eating it.

Problem with rabbits Julia, is that you really need to kill them yourself to ensure you get a fresh one. If they're not drawn (gutted) within an hour of killing them, the flesh gets tainted and is useless for eating.

NickInTheNorth
05-Nov-07, 23:50
I eat it any chance I get. If anyone knows of a good cheap supply let me know :)

gary.b
06-Nov-07, 08:31
I don't eat them myself anymore but have regular in the past, the smell off them when gutting puts me off these days, I save my rabbit for the bird, dogs and ferrets the smell don't bother them. I've eaten squirrel (grey) too, now that is delicious, shame we don't many up this way.

Thumper
06-Nov-07, 09:27
Is it safe to come out yet?[para]:eek: x

helenwyler
06-Nov-07, 10:24
Thumper...I think it's probably safe now...but if you catch someone tip-toing behind you, muttering "Onion Sauce!"....scarper!:eek:[lol]

the_big_mac
06-Nov-07, 10:25
I love Rabbit, an excellent meat that is wild and in no way reared intensively, cheap, lean and tastes great, what more can anyone ask for?

I want to find a way into shooting them myself now tho, so if anyone has any tips?

ber219
06-Nov-07, 10:29
Not yet tried it to be honest, however our cat does bring me one in every so often.....

helenwyler
06-Nov-07, 10:35
Ooops! Sorry Thumper...my reassurances were premature![lol]

Big Mac...please don't shoot Thumper. She's probably not "cheap, lean and tastes great" (but then I don't know for sure!).;)

xx_chickie
06-Nov-07, 12:02
you know thats one thing I love about living here, you can talk about these things and it is normal :lol:

Haha!!! Well said, corgiman!

Thumper
06-Nov-07, 13:11
Ooops! Sorry Thumper...my reassurances were premature!

Big Mac...please don't shoot Thumper. She's probably not "cheap, lean and tastes great" (but then I don't know for sure!).
Who said I was cheap?;) Not all that lean either,but I make up for it with personality............and a very soft fluffy coat ;) x

Rheghead
06-Nov-07, 21:03
They were selling rabbits in Harralds butchers for £1.50 each during the summer. I assume they were on sale as a result of a pest control thing.

Ricco
06-Nov-07, 21:06
I love rabbit, or pheasant, etc. Much better than a tough ol' bit of steak any day. :)

corgiman
06-Nov-07, 21:14
probably someone out ferretting making a bob or two out of it, it's a better way to control the numbers than myxi, far cleaner way to die.

lynne duncan
06-Nov-07, 23:59
we never got much rabbit when we were young oh! but what we did get occasionaly was hare and mum made the best stew with it, it is my favourite game meat

nightowl
07-Nov-07, 01:57
They were selling rabbits in Harralds butchers for £1.50 each during the summer. I assume they were on sale as a result of a pest control thing.

Saw them in Harralds yesterday. Frozen and still £1.50 each. Caught locally.

oldmarine
08-Nov-07, 02:15
When I was much younger I ate wild rabbits. Since then I have lost my taste for them. The taste has become too strong for me.

sassylass
08-Nov-07, 02:56
I remember my aunt serving them, and my dad whispering that uncle must have chased them for miles, the meat was that tough [lol]

richman
08-Nov-07, 10:40
They were selling rabbits in Harralds butchers for £1.50 each during the summer. I assume they were on sale as a result of a pest control thing.do harrold 's no sponsor the caithness rabbit fancier 's shows ? i wonder where they get their rabbits from then ? :eek:

corgiman
08-Nov-07, 10:43
Actually harrolds provided us with a trophy for this show, we approached over 70 companies locally and harrols were one of the only ones to help. We absolutely do not supply Harrolds with rabbit's and I do not like that insinuation at all.

richman
08-Nov-07, 10:58
keep yer hare on , dinna be so serious ., i was choost jokin lek . good on ye harrolds .

anyone have a recipe for rabbit stew ? i used til shoot wild rabbits at sandside and big house when i was a young loon . very taste y, mmmm .

corgiman
08-Nov-07, 13:00
It may seem a harmless thing to say but I know there are groups online who scour the net for posts such as this and wreak havoc, I know one breeder who had her child's life threatened by them and was subjected to a horrendous hate campaign, another stud who had their shed torched and letters sent to say that their rabbits were better to have died that way than have to live with the breeder. For some strange reason this group are absolutely anti rabbit breeding and showing and just will not listen to a word of sense. The same people though, post pics of their pet rabbits with myxi and all say aww poor bunny, bunny hugs to make him better and as expected up to 6 weeks later after all the pain and misery of the disease said rabbit dies.

Phoenix200416
08-Nov-07, 17:56
I've had rabbit once, when my dog managed to catch one (a stroke of luck I saw, my dog isn't very bright) thought seeing as he had killed it and there was no puncture marks or anything I'd take it home. The smell of preparing it nearly put me off eating it though! Milo had some too of course and it wasn't bad when I ate it.

christina
08-Nov-07, 22:11
used to eat them quite alot when i was a bairn not had them in years used to help my dad skin them too!!

George Brims
09-Nov-07, 02:27
Miscellaneous rabbit tales:

Watten used to have a man who filled several roles (Watten being a small place), village drunk and village thief being his two main ones. I won't mention his name but a lot of people will know who I'm talking about! In pre-myxomatosis days, many people snared or otherwise caught wild rabbits, and the butcher's van would pick them up at the end of the farm road, and take them to town to be sold in the shop. Now our thief knew if the van man found all the rabbits at the end of his road and none for a mile or two either side, he would be suspicious, so instead of stealing them he just changed the wee labels attached to each bunny. It took several months for people to wonder why they hadn't been getting paid, and an investigation to result in one of his many vacations in the Hotel Porterfield, Inverness.

When I was extremely young I lived at Strath Farm near Watten. Hugh Steven was the gardener at the "big house", and kept a ferret. One day he was using his ferret to catch rabbits in a field down by the river where there was a large warren, and his ferret failed to come back up. He did a bit of digging and to his surprise hit something metallic. It was a flat metal plate. He dug to one side and hit another plate at right angles to the first. At that point the penny dropped and he got out of there. He had hit the tail fins of a very large WW2 bomb. Bomb disposal decided after digging clear around it that it was best just detonated right there. When I was a boy we used to play in the resulting hole. Made a great fort.

Finally: When we moved from that farm to the village, we took one cat with us. She was a great hunter (and mauler of dogs!). One morning my mum opened the back door to let her in (she would often go off at night and come back in her own sweet time - the cat that is) and after seeing my dad off to work settled down to have a cup of tea in the kitchen. She was still in her dressing gown and barefoot. Suddenly she realised it wasn't the cat's long fur she was touching with her foot. Fluffy had brought home a fine offering of a rabbit bigger than herself (minus the head).

engiebenjy
09-Nov-07, 11:47
I never knew until recently that my mam used to cook it for us when we were young and told us it was chicken. I don't think I would fancy it now if knew what I was eating. :eek:

Have to hold my hands up and admit I have done this too LOL! Have a photo of the oldest one back in the pot for more of Mum's really fabby 'chicken' stew, eating it from the ladle! If only she knew!!!