Ingredients
- 2 Wild Rabbits
- 3.5oz Butter
- Pheasant
- Dijon Mustard
- Partridge
- 6oz Suet
- Dry Cured Bacon
- 14oz Self Raising Flour
- Chicken and Game Stock
- Cider
- 3 large Carrots
- Parsley and Sage
- 3 Leeks
- Red Cabbage
- 2 Large Onions
- 1 cup Balsamic Vinegar
- 5 Cloves Garlic
- 2 Apples
- 10 Shiitake Mushrooms
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 cup maple syrup
- Lemon
- 2 cups of petit pois
Method
Skin and joint the rabbit, pluck and joint the pheasant and partridge. Trim and cut the bacon into lardons.
Prepare the vegetables – chop carrots into ½” cubes. Cut the end off the leeks and remove the core before slicing. Slice the onion. Finely slice 5 cloves of garlic. Add all to a large mixing bowl.
Pour the stock into a pressure cooker, you can use home-made stock or buy ready made from most supermarkets. Pour in a can of cider before adding the meat. Cook for 90 minutes under pressure.
In a large frying pan add a knob of butter and cook out the bacon. Tear the shiitake mushrooms and add to the pan. Turn down the temperature and add the vegetables and sweat down.
Take a stainless steel pan and add a knob of butter. Finely slice an onion and cut 2 eating apples into cubes. Add to the pan. Allow to soften for around 5 minutes. Finely cut a red cabbage and add to the pan. Pour in around a cup of balsamic vinegar, a cup full of apple cider vinegar and a cup of maple syrup. Simmer over a low heat until all the juice has evaporated.
Chop a handful of parsley and several sage leaves and add half to a mixing bowl. Weigh out 100g/3.5oz of cold butter (cut into pieces), 170g/6oz of suet and 400g/14oz of self-raising flour and add to the mixing bowl. Grate in the rind of a lemon and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Work the mix together with your fingers into a crumb texture then add the juice of a lemon and a splash of cold water. Bring the mixture together and form the cobbler balls.
Strain the game meat and retain the broth to make a velouté. Create a roux by using similar amounts of flour and butter and cooking on a low heat. Add a tbsp of Dijon Mustard then slowly add the broth from the game meat. Keep stirring for around 10 minutes and the broth will thicken. Season to taste.
Check the red cabbage and if all of juices have been absorbed taste test. It should be on sharper side of sweet.
Remove the meat from the bones and add to the vegetable pan. Do not shred the meat, leave in large chunks. Add around 2 cups of petit pois and the remainder of the herbs and gently fold through. Decant into a large baking dish and pour the velouté over the top. Nestle the dumplings on top. Create an egg wash and glaze the top of the dumpling. Place in a pre-heated oven at 220°C/425°F. for 30 minutes.
Serve each portion with several dumplings and a side of the braised cabbage.
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