Slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer

Name: Slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 4 persons
Cuisine: World
Ingredients: 1 rabbit into pieces (or use 4 rabbit legs); 2 onions; 1 bottle of beer (a heavier kind, we've used Chimay trappist); optional: 2 tablespoons of sugar; 300 gram pitted dates; 600 ml vinegar; 3 bay leaves; few sprigs of fresh thyme; 1 large spoonful of molasses; dairy butter; pepper and salt to taste

Slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer is a delicious tender main dish. A bit sour and a bit sweet, just the right balance. Perfection!

Slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer ingredients

Recipe slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer

Made by Véronique

Published at 2018-11-27, this recipe is for 4 persons and takes 1 hours 15 minutes.

Founder of Ohmydish (since 2014), she prefers to spend all day in the kitchen. Once working in the hospitality industry as an independent chef, she loves helping you gain confidence in the kitchen. With her easy-to-follow recipes, handy tips, and cooking knowledge, you'll make the most delicious dishes yourself! The recipes are accessible to everyone, from beginners to advanced home cooks.

Updated at: 2025-07-19

Let's get started

Preparation time

15 minutes

Time cooking

1 hours

Total time

1 hours 15 minutes

Preparation - 15 minutes + waiting time

Peel and chop the onions into thin (half) rings. Add the pieces of rabbit in a large bowl and pour in vinegar and water along with bay leaves, sprigs of thyme and onions. Marinate for at least 12 hours, this way the rabbit will become very tender.

Make sure the dates are pitted and divided into halves. Remove the rabbit from the bowl, sieve the water and vinegar and keep the onion, bay leaves and thyme.

Throw out the water and vinegar and pat the rabbit dry using paper kitchen towels. Season all sides with pepper and salt.

Finishing the slow-cooked rabbit with dates and beer - 1 hour

Heat a knob of butter in a dutch skillet, or other heavy bottomed pan, and add the rabbit pieces until they're beautifully golden brown on all sides. If they don't fit in the pan all at once, it's best to cook them in batches.

Add the onion rings, included bay leaves and thyme, and sauté a few minutes more. Pour in the beer and stir in molasses, bring to a boil and turn down the heat as soon as it starts to boil.

Let it simmer for about 40 minutes without lid. Make sure the rabbit won't stick to the pan. Remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs and add the pitted dates. Let it simmer for another 10 minutes.

SEASON with pepper and salt, now you can also add 2 tablespoons of sugar if you like. SERVE with Brussels sprouts, red cabbage and potatoes. Enjoy!