In my house, a casserole dish always means healthy and comfort food. It also means slow cooking food, steamy windows, and the thing I like the most: Mom, is there anything left in the casserole? The answer should always be... Yes darling, go help yourself :D
Why is this a healthy and family favourite dish?Here you have some of the main reasons: First, we love rabbit and snails (it's a catalan tradition to have both together in the same dish). Second, rabbit is one of the most healthy meats... it's white, non greasy, and very tasty (great for diets). Third, romesco is such a wonderful sauce... think about the ingredients: garlic, tomatoes, ñoras, hazelnuts and almonds, olive oil... what on earth could be healthier than that combo?
Why am I giving you all these health tips? Well, I'm sending the dish over to Meeta from What's for lunch honey? and her Monthly Mingle. Many dishes came to my mind for her Healthy Family meals, but Snails & Rabbit and Romesco Sauce won the first place!!! So, here you have it Meeta :D. The hostess for this month's event is Michelle from What's Cooking Blog.Wouldn't you lick these snails and suck all the sauce in them? Well, we do! Wouldn't you use your bread to clean the plate? Well, we do! Wouldn't you use your fingers to eat the rabbit and snails and leave the plate with just the bones and shells, as if Tim Burton would use it for a new movie? Well... we do!!!
Really, you don't know how good is this dish if you don't try it!!! Just buy the Rioja wine, light some candles and get your beloved in front of you, open the bottle and have it for Valentines day... help the world population grow bigger :D :D :D.
Ingredients for 4 servings: 8 rabbit pieces + the liver, 1 kilo of fresh snails, 2 medium onions, 4 garlic cloves, 4 tablespoons of romesco sauce (home made is my choice), 1 guindilla (small red chili pepper), flour, salt, black ground pepper, 2 glass water and olive oil.To cook the snails you will need: patience, some branches of thyme, half a garlic head, water and salt.
Buy the snails alive. Have them fasting for at least a week. Clean them throughout one by one and rubbing the shells under tap water. Put in a strainer and rinse them under water for several times. Have them in cold water and those that don't come out of the shell put in a recipient with hot water. Those not coming out of the shells should be discarded.
Prepare a deep big pot with cold water, the thyme and the garlic. Put the snails inside, cover with the lid and have at low heat. When the snails feel the heat will come out of their shells (this is the way to cheat them and have the bodies out of the shells to eat them easily). Once they are dead and the water starts boiling, take the foam away and add some salt. Boil for 20 minutes, strain and reserve.
Start the dish:
- Get some olive oil in a big casserole, while it heats up, clean the rabbit, dry, add salt and pepper over it and coat in flour. Fry in the casserole's hot oil. Just at medium heat. Reserve when golden.
- If the oil didn't get too dirty from the flour, add the two chopped onions and stir at low medium heat until they get some colour, then add the chopped garlic. Stir until fragrant add the chili and finally the snails. Stir at low heat for 10 minutes. If the oil was full of burnt flour, strain it and add some new one to start with the ingredients.
- Get the rabbit back to the casserole and pour the 2 glasses of water over it. Shake the casserole and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.
- Use the rabbit's liver now. Chop it and add to the casserole, stir and shake for a while until the liver is cooked. Cover with the lid for another 10 or 15 minutes. Stir now and then.
- Add the romesco sauce and shake the casserole so that all ingredients mix. Have at low heat for another 5 minutes.
- This dish is better the day after or if you cook it in the morning will be perfect for dinner. Enjoy!
Do you love Rabbit and Snails? Want more recipes?
Rabbit and Noodles casserole
Snails done in Garlic and Mint
Rice with Snails and Veggies
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