BELGIUM - CARBONADE OF RABBIT BRAISED IN ALE with TWISTED MASHED POTATOES (STOEMP) and WALNUT PEAR SALAD
Belgium is a small but influential nation in north-western Europe renowned for its beautifully preserved medieval cities, world-famous brewing traditions, fine chocolates and rich artistic heritage. Bordered by the North Sea and situated between France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, it occupies a remarkably well-connected crossroads of Western Europe, where trade routes, cultures and ideas have converged for centuries. Today, the country is also the administrative heart of the European Union, further reflecting its role as a meeting place between different peoples and traditions.
Its unique geographic and cultural position has shaped the cuisine of Belgian creating a culinary landscape that blends a bounty of North Sea seafood and local agricultural products with influences from across Europe and beyond. The story of Belgian cuisine begins with the country's fertile and abundant valleys and waterways. Medieval farmers cultivated grains, root vegetables and cabbages, while nearby forests supplied wild game, herbs and mushrooms. The climate proved ideal for dairy farming, fostering a rich tradition of butter, cream and cheese production that remains central to Belgian cooking today.
Whilst Belgian cuisine reflects the influences of neighbouring food cultures it maintains a unique character of its own. French culinary traditions have contributed refined techniques for making sauces, while Dutch cooking has encouraged hearty vegetable dishes and practical methods of preservation. German influences can be seen in the use of sausages, breads and robust meat preparations. Rather than simply adopting these traditions, Belgian cooks blended them into a cuisine that values both comfort and craftsmanship.
Key ingredients include potatoes, leeks, Belgian endive, mussels, beef, pork, cream, butter and seasonal vegetables. Signature flavours balance richness with subtle sweetness and gentle acidity, often enhanced by beer, mustard, herbs and slow cooking. The result is a cuisine renowned for its hearty stews, seafood dishes, exceptional chocolates, waffles and world-famous fries.
Our
BELGIAN
menu included
CARBONADE OF RABBIT BRAISED IN ALE
with
TWISTED MASHED POTATOES (STOEMP)
WALNUT PEAR SALAD
and sides of
fresh artisan sourdough bread and mustard
CARBONADE OF RABBIT BRAISED IN ALE
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
· 1 plump rabbit cut in 6-8 portions (your butcher can do this for you)
· 345ml bottle of red/brown Belgian Ale (we used Rodenbach Grand Cru)
· 2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
· 6 stems fresh thyme
· 6 bay leaves
· 6 juniper berries (or 12 replace with cloves)
· 3 large garlic cloves, crushed
· 1 cup flour seasoned with salt and pepper
· 100 ml beef stock (or claret)
· 3 tbs tarragon vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
· 2 heaped tsp brown sugar
· 1 tbs red currant jelly (or replace with cranberry jelly)
· 1/2 cup pitted prunes
· 4 tbs olive oil – and more if needed
· 1 tsp Dijon mustard
· 200 gm thick cut bacon, diced
· Extra salt and pepper to taste
· Extra materials: kitchen paper
NOTES and a Dinner Party Cheat TIP:
Ø Timing for this recipe is long but it’s not complicated and is totally worth it
Ø You need to start preparing this dish 24 hours before you start cooking it
Ø It tastes fab right out of the oven but actually tastes better 24 hours later
Ø If you want to host an easy dinner party featuring this dish, marinate the rabbit 3 days before your event, cook it, cool it and refrigerate it on day 2, then on day 3 simply relax with your guests, re-heat the rabbit and enjoy.
METHOD
1. 24 hours before you want to begin cooking the rabbit start by marinating the pre-cut portions overnight following steps 2 to 9 of this recipe
2. Put the brown sugar and juniper berries in a small bowl then pour the tarragon vinegar over that and stir to combine
3. Let the mix sit until the sugar has dissolved then stir in the crushed garlic
4. Take a deep 20 x 30 cm (or similar size) glass/ceramic dish and start by putting a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper across the bottom
5. Add the rabbit pieces to the dish and top with the tarragon sugar mix
6. Now pour the beer across the top and turn the rabbit pieces over to ensure a good coverage of the marinade on the meat
7. finally, use a spoon to slip the fresh bay leaves and thyme sprigs evenly around the rabbit and push the herbs under the marinade
8. Now cover the dish and refrigerate over night
9. In the morning turn the rabbit pieces over and leave to marinate for a further 5-6 hours in fridge
10. When you are ready to cook turn the oven on to 180 degrees c to heat
11. Remove the rabbit pieces from the marinade, place them into a clean dish and save the marinade liquid for later
12. The rabbit pieces may release some liquid and if they do just pour it back into the reserved marinade
13. Now pat the rabbit meat pieces dry with kitchen paper
14. Then pop the rabbit pieces and the seasoned flour in a large container with a tight lid (or a large strong paper bag held tightly at the top), and shake the container around until rabbit pieces are coated in flour
15. Take the rabbit pieces out of the flour one at a time, shaking off any excess flour and pop the pieces on a plate. Reserve left over flour for later
16. Heat 4 tbs olive oil in a Dutch Oven (or similar flameproof casserole pot that has a tight fitting lid) on medium-hot on top of the stove
17. Sauté rabbit pieces in the oil until brown on all sides (being careful with the temperature not to burn it) then set pieces aside on a clean plate
NOTE: Depending on the size of the pan or heating element you are working with you may need to fry the pieces in 2 batches. If doing 2 batches you may have to add a bit more olive oil to the pan and reheat it for the second batch
18. Now fry the bacon in the hot pan until crisp and set that aside on a plate
19. Next turn back the heat on the pan a bit and gently sauté the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes stirring often with a wooden spoon
20. Add in the stock/claret to deglaze the pan and use the wooden spoon to scrap up all the crisp bits from the bottom to begin making a sauce
21. When the liquid has reduced to almost nothing and a glaze has formed turn back the heat and sprinkle in the reserved flour and stir until smooth
22. Now gradually add in the ale marinade, mustard and any liquid that has leaked out of the rested rabbit pieces stirring so it all combines smoothly
23. Bring the sauce to the boil, add the rabbit pieces back in, as well as generous amount of salt and pepper, stir, cover and pop in the 180 c oven (or cook on top off the stove on a medium-low heat element) for 1 hour
24. The prunes need to soak in hot water for 1 hour so start this now
25. put the prunes and red currant jelly in a heat proof jug and pour 1 cup boiling water over the top to dissolve the jelly and soften the prunes
26. After 1 hour take the dish out of the oven (off the heat element) and carefully remove the lid away from you to avoid a steam burn
27. Scrape up the sauce from around the sides and bottom of the pot with a spoon then stir in the bacon, prunes and the water they were soaked in
28. Replace the lid and return pot to the oven/heat to cook for a further 50-60 minutes until the rabbit is very tender and sauce has thickened. If the sauce seems too thick add a little boiling water to thin it out before serving
TWISTED MASHED POTATOES (STOEMP)
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
· 500 gm potatoes, peeled and cut in 1 cm cubes
· 500 gm carrots, peeled and cut in 1/2 cm dice
· 1 leek
· I cup spinach, washed and chopped
· 6 fresh sprigs thyme about 6 cm long
· 2- 4 fresh bay leaves
· 2 large pinches grated nutmeg
· a splash of milk
· 1 tbs butter
· Salt and pepper to taste
METHOD
1. Start by preparing the leek. Use a sharp knife to cut off the very bottom root section of the leek and the dark green tops and discard those
2. Now cut the leek in half longways and wash it thoroughly under running water to remove any residual dirt hidden in between the leek layers
3. Shake off excess water and sliced the leek across the stem into half moons
4. Take a large pot and add in the chopped potatoes and carrots with a heaped tsp salt, cover with cold water add a lid and bring to the boil on stove top
5. Add in the chopped leeks, thyme and bay leaves, bring back to the boil, half cover with a lid, lower the temperature a little and simmer for 20 mins
TIP: Now you are ready to add the spinach, but first remove the thyme stems and the bay leaves as they are easier to spot before the spinach goes in
6. Add the spinach to the pot , stir it in and bring the pot back to the boil. Now simmer it uncovered until all the vegetables are tender, about 10 mins
7. Drain vegetables into a colander for a few minutes then tip them back into the hot pot they were cooked in
8. Pop the pot back onto the heat element on very low and use a wooden spoon to stir/beat the veg until all the steam has gone out of them
9. Now turn the heat off and stir in the butter and milk
10. Mash until creamy with your preferred tool then finish by adding nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste and giving the mash a good stir
WALNUT PEAR SALAD
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
· 1 large pear, ideally with some red skin for salad contrast
· 1/2 cup walnut halves
· 4 tbs olive oil
· Juice of half a lemon (or 2 tbs tarragon vinegar)
· 1/2 tbs honey
· salt and pepper
· 2 Belgian endive or 1 small radicchio, washed dried and broken into leaves
· Some fresh tarragon leaf tips and flowers for garnish
NOTES:
Ø The dressing and toasted nuts can be prepared ahead of time but the pear should only be cut just before you are going to assemble and serve the salad because cut pear turns brown rapidly when exposed to oxygen, and whilst it is safe to eat pear that has turned brown it’s not as pleasing for the eye
Ø This salad would usually be served on a bed of Belgian Endive (which depending on where you live may be known as Witlof, Chicory or Chicon)
Ø As we couldn’t source Witlof at this time of year in Australia we replaced it with radicchio which is a closely related food cousin in the chicory family
METHOD
1. Start by making a vinaigrette style dressing in a clean jar that has a lid
2. Put the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper into the jar, screw on the lid, shake it well and then set it aside for the flavours to combine
3. Dry toast the walnuts in a medium hot frypan on the stove top until golden then set the nuts aside on a plate to cool
TIP: Keep looking when cooking! Golden to burnt happens quickly with nuts
1. Wash and dry the pear.
2. You will only begin cutting the pear just before serving the salad as sliced pear can turn brown when exposed to oxygen
3. You are now going to cut it into 4 core-free slabs
4. Stand the pear up on the chopping board and slice straight down from top to bottom about 1 centimetre away from the centre stem to get 1 slab
5. Repeat this on the other side of the pear to get a second thick, fleshy, completely core-free slab of pear.
6. You now have a 2 cm thin slice of pear left that has the core in its middle
7. Lay that down and make 2 lengthwise cuts to remove the core
8. You now have 2 more smaller slabs of core free pear
9. Place your pear slabs on the chopping board with skin facing up and use a sharp knife to cut them lengthwise into thin slices each with a strip of skin
10. Assemble the salad by laying out the endive leaves on a plate, topping them with pear slices, sprinkling the toasted walnuts over the pear then drizzling everything with the dressing. Now stud some tarragon sprigs and flowers strategically and the salad is ready to be served.
These are all Q-ZINE original recipes informed by multiple sources including (but not limited to):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbonade_flamande
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/7223/7223-h/7223-h.htm#link2h_4_0027
https://www.craftbeering.com/rabbit-stew-recipe-belgian-ale-prunes/
https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/rabbit_braised_in_belgian_ale/
https://thehungrybelgian.com/2013/07/08/twisty-mashed-potatoes-stoemp/
https://belgianfoodie.com/salade-liegeoise-green-beans-and-bacon/
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