Do you have to soak farm raised rabbits in salt water?

[johnnyInterested]

I have always heard that you were supposed to soak small wild game in salt water before cooking to get rid of the gamey taste. What if the rabbit is "farm" raised? By farm I mean in my backyard in a hutch. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

We use to butcher our rabbits. It is really up to you..some people do some don't. We didn't. You could try it both ways to see if there is a taste difference. Then fix it the way you prefer. We would fry our up like southern fried chicken. Good eats!!

 

[justhatchin]

I do the bigger ones before I roast them, but not the friers. The home grown ones -depending on what you fed them - don't have the game taste.

 

[johnnyInterested]

Quote:
What did you feed them to not taste gamey?

 

[Tuffoldhen]

We always soaked them in salt water for a few hours to help remove the blood.

 

[freemotion]

Ours got hay, oats, a salt block and free produce from the grocery store and were processed young.....tasted like chicken!

A couple that escaped and were eventually caught tasted just like wild rabbits....yuk.

 

[johnnyInterested]

Quote:
Please forgive my ignorance here but why do people not do that with a chicken? Is there not enough blood? I ask because when I saw the butchered rabbit it did look more "bloody." Why do I need to remove the blood?

 

[miss_thenorth]

The blood will taint the taste of the meat. IMO, all animals should be bled properly when butchered. Backyard meat rabbits should not have a wild taste. They should be butchered at 12 weeks of age, which is still really young, so they should be tender, with no wild taste. If the mainstay of their diet is the pellets, that should also help. Brining, (saltwater soaking) is usually used for wild game to add moisture to the meat. When you hunt wild rabbit or hare, it is difficult to determine their age, so usually slow cooking methods and brining are used for them. Not necessary for backyard meat rabbits.

I have never brined any meat. We hunt deer, moose, grouse, bear, duck, geese, rabbit, hare. I raise chickens and rabbits for meat. (so far

)

 

[Tuffoldhen]

Quote:
Please forgive my ignorance here but why do people not do that with a chicken? Is there not enough blood? I ask because when I saw the butchered rabbit it did look more "bloody." Why do I need to remove the blood?

I do do that with any chicken that I butcher out and all the wild game (rabbit, squirrel ,venison) or home grown rabbits that mom did at home. Letting blood set in meat will taint the taste.

 

[johnnyInterested]

Quote:
Please forgive my ignorance here but why do people not do that with a chicken? Is there not enough blood? I ask because when I saw the butchered rabbit it did look more "bloody." Why do I need to remove the blood?

I do do that with any chicken that I butcher out and all the wild game (rabbit, squirrel ,venison) or home grown rabbits that mom did at home. Letting blood set in meat will taint the taste.

Is it possible to properly bleed the rabbit so the soaking is unnecessary?