Conejo al Tomillo

A classic of the Spanish interior: rabbit browned in olive oil and braised gently with a whole head of garlic, dry white wine, bay, and a great handful of thyme, the herb that scents the dry uplands where the rabbit itself was raised, until the meat is tender and the pan is fragrant with the hillside

Origin: Castile and La Mancha, Spain

From the journey of Thyme.

Rabbit is the meat of the dry Spanish interior, of Castile, La Mancha, Aragón, and the Levante, where the animal grazes the same thyme-scented scrub that flavours the dish. Conejo al tomillo, rabbit with thyme, is country cooking at its most direct: a few good ingredients, a heavy pan, and time. Thyme (tomillo) is not a background note here but the defining flavour, used with a generous, almost reckless hand to perfume the meat as it braises in white wine and olive oil with a whole head of garlic. It is the kind of dish cooked in venta and farmhouse alike, eaten with bread to mop the garlicky, thyme-soaked juices, and it tastes of the sunbaked Spanish hill country itself.

Ingredients

1.5 kg rabbit, jointed into 8 pieces (or 4 chicken legs as a substitute)
5 tbsp olive oil
2 heads garlic, cloves separated and lightly crushed, skins left on
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
8 sprigs fresh thyme (or 2 tbsp dried thyme)
200 ml dry white wine
200 ml chicken stock or water
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

Method

Season the rabbit pieces well with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy pan or casserole over medium-high heat and brown the rabbit on all sides until deep golden, working in batches. Lift out and set aside.
Lower the heat to medium. Add the crushed garlic cloves in their skins and the chopped onion. Cook gently for 8 to 10 minutes until the onion is soft and the garlic fragrant and golden.
Pour in the white wine and let it bubble for 2 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the base of the pan. Add the bay leaf and the thyme.
Return the rabbit to the pan along with any resting juices. Add the stock; the liquid should come about halfway up the meat. Bring to a gentle simmer.
Cover and braise gently for about 45 minutes, turning the pieces once, until the rabbit is tender and the sauce slightly reduced. Stir in the sherry vinegar in the last 5 minutes and check the seasoning.
Serve hot, spooning the garlic cloves and the thyme-scented juices over the rabbit, with plenty of bread or fried potatoes to soak up the sauce.

Notes

Rabbit is the authentic and traditional meat for this dish, but it works beautifully with chicken legs or thighs if rabbit is hard to come by; simply increase the braising time slightly for larger pieces. The quantity of thyme may look excessive but it is the point of the dish: tomillo is the headline, not a seasoning. A dry white wine from the Spanish interior, such as a Verdejo, is the natural choice both for the pot and the glass.

The Gastrographer

Name: Conejo al Tomillo
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: 1.5 kg rabbit, jointed into 8 pieces (or 4 chicken legs as a substitute); 5 tbsp olive oil; 2 heads garlic, cloves separated and lightly crushed, skins left on; 1 large onion, finely chopped; 1 bay leaf; 8 sprigs fresh thyme (or 2 tbsp dried thyme); 200 ml dry white wine; 200 ml chicken stock or water; 1 tbsp sherry vinegar; 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

Mapping Culinary History

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control