Rillettes can be used as a canape or cold starter. We often serve a combination of small bowls of rillettes, toast, cornichons and salad when guests first sit down. It all makes for a happy exchange at the table.
• 1 x rabbit jointed
• 1kg pork belly, skin on
• 20g bundle of fresh thyme and bay leaves
• 2 bulbs garlic, sliced in half
• lemon peel from 1 lemon
• 2kg duck fat
• Cornichons to serve
• 4 tbsp Maldon sea salt
• 8 black peppercorns
1. Firstly, joint your rabbit into 8 pieces or ask your butcher to do this. Mix together the salt, peppercorns, herbs, garlic and lemon peel. Generously rub this mixture over the rabbit. Pack snugly into a container with your pork belly, refrigerate overnight. Curing adds to the flavour, although watch out for curing the rabbit for too long and making everything too salty. Twelve hours is the optimum.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 160C. Clean off all the salt, leave the herbs and garlic. Place the meats in a large and deep roasting pan and cover with duck fat. Cover with tin foil. Poach the rabbit and pork submerged in the fat. Generally this takes four hours. The meat is ready when it is collapsing away from the bone. Leave to the side until cooler enough to handle.
3. Shred both meats together, discarding the bones and herbs. Squeeze the garlic, discarding the skins and season. Strain the duck fat. Once you have a bowl of finely shredded meats, mix together with the warm duck fat. Store in the fridge and remove a few hours before serving. Serve on toasted sour dough with cornichon.
