When we once gathered important Međimurje chefs in one place, at the home of chef Marko Palfi, as we wrote here, Matija Bogdan prepared temfani rabbit for us. As he explained, in Međimurje, and also in his family, both rabbit and hare are usually called ‘zajcom‘, so his dish is called ‘Zajec‘.

Vedran Peteh/Cropix

Vedran Peteh/Cropix

He prepared it ‘temfani‘, that is, in a thick, silky sauce with sour cream. This way, Bogdan explained, you can always prepare chicken as well, which is a bit more common for an everyday midweek lunch. The recipe is not complicated, and the dish is literally finger-licking good, so if you don‘t know what to cook these days, try making temfanje, you can‘t go wrong with this dish.

Vedran Peteh/Cropix

Vedran Peteh/Cropix

‘ZAJEC‘

You will need:
1 rabbit of about 1 kg (with bones)
2 larger onions
10 g smoked red paprika
2 cloves of garlic
pork fat
200 ml wine
chicken stock
100 g sour cream
1 tablespoon flour
Recommendation:
Portion the rabbit into shoulders, thighs, and middle part. Sear the meat on all sides in fat. Remove it from the pot. Add a bit more fat to the same pot, sauté finely chopped onion until it gets a nice golden color. Add garlic, red paprika, and pour in white wine. Let it reduce by a third, so it remains slightly tangy. Return the meat. Add (brown) chicken stock. Cook until the meat softens. First put in the thighs, then later add the shoulders so the meat doesn’t fall apart. Cook for about two hours and add more stock if needed. In a separate bowl, mix sour cream and flour, add a little sauce, mix it all well together and add to the pot where the meat is cooking. Cook for a short while longer and then remove from heat.