coniglio alla sanremese — Italy

Coniglio alla ligure is a main-course rabbit dish from the countryside of Liguria, in northwestern Italy. Pieces of rabbit are browned and then braised slowly with wild herbs, garlic, white wine and small black olives, producing a dish that is fragrant rather than heavy. Reports of this dish are tied to inland Ligurian villages, where rabbit was commonly raised in small backyard hutches and cooked for Sunday meals or family gatherings. The dish is associated in particular with areas near Sanremo, on the western Ligurian coast. To prepare it, rabbit pieces are browned in olive oil, then joined by garlic, rosemary, thyme and other wild herbs gathered locally. The pan is deglazed with white Vermentino wine, the local variety grown along this coast, and the rabbit is left to simmer gently, covered, until the meat is tender. Taggiasche olives, small and mild, are stirred in toward the end of cooking, and pine nuts are sometimes added for texture. Reports describe the Vermentino wine and the taggiasche olives as the two elements that set this version apart from other regional rabbit preparations, which may instead use red wine, or tomato, or skip the olives altogether. The wild herbs gathered from the surrounding countryside are also mentioned as part of what gives the dish its particular character.