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I live in Cincinnati, OH and it's really hard to find grassfed beef around here unless you are a CSA member. Whole Foods here does have grassfed beef, but I am looking for something more local. I was at a local meat market today and they were selling whole rabbits. Rabbit should have a decent omega 3:6 ratio, because I don't think rabbit meat industry practices CAFO...and I just can't imagine rabbits eating GMO corn/soy....Would eating rabbit be better than eating pastured, freerange chicken? What do you think? Do you think these rabbits are treated with hormones/antibiotics?

Any easy recipes? Thanks!

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7 Answers

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I raise my own rabbits, and most feeds found at farming/feed stores are primarily hay (and some grains/veggies). Rabbits do have fat, but it's on the skin. You'd have to request that and render it for food usage.

My rabbits are on an organic diet of orchard grass hay, and an oat hay/timothy hay pellet mixture. They also get cuttings of non-sugary vegetables such as kale, spinach, celery, lettuce, various grasses, oats, parsley, mint, rosemary, thyme, etc. For treats or when the does give birth, I give them carrots, berries, apple cuttings, and beets.

The meat is very high in protein, much higher than any other animal of which I am aware. They are low in fat, and are very low in saturated fats, unfortunately, but there are benefits of rabbit meat. They have 100% of the daily recommended dosage for vitamin B12 in about 3.5 oz. of meat and they have a good deal of digestible iron. They're low in both cholesterol and calories, and are by far one of the cleanest meats to consume. Very few diseases and bacteria in rabbit are transferable to humans. They don't receive vaccinations or antibiotics in most rabbitries. Their livers are fabulous for pate! [http://www.threelittleladiesrabbitry.com/blog2/2011/01/20/nutritional-value-of-rabbit-meat/]

My favourite rabbit dish is French dish called "Lapin a la Coccotte": http://www.food.com/recipe/lapin-a-la-cocotte-french-rabbit-stew-114799, which is very similar to Coq au Vin, another family favourite.

If you worry about the low fat content, it's encouraged to have desert afterwards. I like pairing my rabbit with an avocado "pudding".

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Mmm Lappin a la coccotte! this will definitely be my first attempt at French cooking! Thank you for sharing your knowledge! I will definitely give rabbit meat a try! How do you make your avocado pudding? =) – coffeesnob May 6 2012 at 2:11
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2 avocados 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder 1/2 cup honey 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 pinch salt Toss it in the blender and magnificence comes out! MMMM. – SarahH May 6 2012 at 5:12
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Use this recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robert-irvine/rabbit-stew-recipe/index.html

Sub the following:

  • arrowroot for flour
  • your preferred cooking oil for grapeseed oil
  • white sweet potato for regular potato (assuming you eat sweet potatoes. If not, omit.)

This got rave reviews at my house. I have to remember to write up a post about this.

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Hm that looks really, really good! Thanks for sharing this! – coffeesnob May 5 2012 at 23:04
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Most pet rabbits eat Timothy hay, rabbit feed which usually consists Of industrial seed oils and corn, and some occaisionally fresh vegetables. I atone rabbits raised for food eat mostly the former two and Not much fresh veggies. I'd treat it like really Lean chicken. Not likely a favorable omega 3 ratio but if cooked in healthy traditional fats, probably not terrible.

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Oh... so these rabbits don't always eat grass and carrots? =( picture books fooled me. – coffeesnob May 5 2012 at 23:03
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Anyone touched on Ostrich before? I was curious about the taste, nutritional breakdown, and omega ratio's.

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Don't know much about the fats, but it tastes similar to beef. Not quite the same, but close. – Blitherakt May 6 2012 at 2:07
I've been wondering the same thing. And, if anyone could comment on how commercial ostriches are raised, it would be great! – coffeesnob May 6 2012 at 2:13
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I find rabbat as tasteless as white meat chicken.Never again!.... My Paleo cat however, loves every inch of her rabbits(minus the femur/humerus). She gets this glassey- eyed look as she glances up between bites as she's crunching the ribs and vertabrae. Very beastial/paleo . Reminds me of my wife while she's orgasming! :)

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lol haha so you are the rabbit meat.... – coffeesnob May 6 2012 at 2:15
Actuslly, it's the crunching of the bones that turns the cat on, so I guess I'd be the bones.:) – shah78 May 6 2012 at 11:36
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I order my meats from us wellness meats and they ship right to my door within a few days and their meats is great, something to consider. I also order their rabbit...I wrote them an email and asked them what their rabbits were fed and they are fed only alfalfa. I can not eat pastured chicken bc it is fed grains so I get sick, the rabbit is great for me and tastes similar to chicken and from what I understand has a great omega 3/6 ratio. Hope this helps

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Rabbits absolutely can and are being raised in CAFO type situations and they are fed pellets that have GMO corn and soy in them. If you want to find healthy rabbit you will need find a local producer who raises theirs on grass (we raise ours in portable pens on pasture for example) or who feed an organic diet like SarahH above. But the stuff you get from the grocery store is as unnatural as all the other factory farmed meat. Rabbits are very easy to raise and butcher so you may want to look at breeding your own.

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