PProvenance
Enter
P
French

Civet de Lièvre — Hare Stewed in Blood-Thickened Wine Sauce

Civet de lièvre is the most primal and ancient of French game braises — a hare marinated in red wine, braised with lardons and aromatics, and finished with a liaison of the animal's own blood, which thickens the sauce to a dark, velvet, almost-black intensity that no other technique can achieve. The word civet derives from cive (chive/spring onion), referring to the abundant onions in the original medieval recipe, but it has come to signify any game preparation finished with a blood liaison. This is cooking at its most honest: an animal taken in the hunt, every part utilised, the blood saved and used to complete the sauce in a closed circle of flavour. Joint the hare into pieces (front legs, back legs halved, saddle in 3-4 sections), reserving the blood mixed with a tablespoon of red wine vinegar to prevent coagulation. The liver is also reserved. Marinate the joints overnight in a full bottle of robust red wine with the usual aromatics. Dry the pieces, brown deeply, flambé with cognac. Build the braise: render lardons, soften mirepoix, add flour, the strained marinade wine, stock, bouquet garni, juniper berries, and a strip of orange zest. Return the hare, cover, and braise at 150°C for 2-2.5 hours for a young hare, up to 3.5 hours for an old one. When tender, remove the meat. Strain and reduce the sauce. The critical moment: off the heat, when the sauce has cooled slightly to 70-75°C (never boiling), whisk in the reserved blood mixed with a tablespoon of cream. Return to the gentlest possible heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens to a dark, opaque, velvet consistency. It must never boil after the blood is added — above 80°C, the blood proteins coagulate into unappetising granules. Separately, sauté the liver in butter, purée it, and stir into the sauce for additional depth. Return the hare pieces, add lardons and crôutons spread with the liver purée. The finished civet is dark as midnight, rich beyond description, with the wild, iron-tinged depth that only blood and game can provide. It is one of the most powerful dishes in the French canon.

‹Swipe for the next dish›
ServesFour portions
TotalOvernight marinade plus 3–4 hours braising
Sourced0of 18 in BC
Cook
‹ Previous · Civet de Chevreuil à l'Alsacienne|Next · Clafoutis Limousin ›
I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

1 (approx. 2–2.5 kg)
wild hare
jointed into front legs, back legs halved, saddle in 3–4 sections; blood and liver reserved
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tbsp
red wine vinegar
mixed with the reserved blood immediately to prevent coagulation
Your own market
For the marinade
750 ml
robust red wine
full bottle; the entry specifies a full bottle for the overnight marinade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
bouquet garni
bay, thyme, parsley stems
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
onion
sliced
Your own market
1
carrot
sliced
Your own market
For the braise
150 g
lardons
rendered in the braising pot
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
mirepoix
onion, carrot, celery in rough dice; softened after lardons
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
30 g
plain flour
added to build the sauce base
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
250 ml
brown stock
game or veal preferred
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
bouquet garni
fresh, for the braise
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
6
juniper berries
lightly crushed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 strip
orange zest
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 ml
cognac
for flambéing the browned hare
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
For the blood liaison
1 tbsp
double cream
mixed with the reserved blood before incorporation
Your own market
For the liver and croûtons
1 (reserved)
hare liver
sautéed in butter and puréed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
20 g
unsalted butter
for sautéing the liver
Your own market
4
croûtons
bread, fried or toasted; spread with liver purée to finish
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II

The Method

1
The day before: joint the hare, collecting every drop of blood into a small bowl and stirring in 1 tbsp red wine vinegar at once. Reserve the liver separately. Combine the joints with the full bottle of red wine and the marinade aromatics. Cover and refrigerate for a full 24 hours. The flesh should be deeply coloured and fragrant with wine when ready.
2
Remove the hare joints from the marinade and dry them thoroughly with kitchen paper. Strain and reserve the marinade wine. Season the joints. Heat a heavy casserole over high heat and brown the hare pieces in batches, turning until every surface is a deep mahogany — not merely golden. Pour over the cognac and flambé, allowing the flames to die out completely. Remove the meat.
3
In the same casserole, render the lardons until their fat runs and they begin to colour. Add the mirepoix and soften without browning. Stir in the flour and cook briefly to a pale roux. Add the strained marinade wine, stock, bouquet garni, juniper berries, and strip of orange zest. Stir until the liquid is smooth and beginning to thicken.
4
Return the hare joints to the casserole, ensuring they are submerged. Cover tightly and braise at 150 °C: 2–2.5 hours for a young hare, up to 3.5 hours for an older animal. The meat is done when it yields without resistance to a skewer and begins to pull from the bone.
5
Meanwhile, sauté the reserved liver in butter over high heat for no more than 1–2 minutes per side — the interior should remain faintly pink. Transfer to a board and purée to a smooth paste. Set aside.
6
Lift the hare pieces from the casserole and keep warm. Strain the braising liquor, discard the aromatics, and return the sauce to the pan. Reduce over medium heat until it is already concentrated and coats a spoon. Remove from the heat and allow the temperature to fall to 70–75 °C — a cook's thermometer is not optional here.
From the canon — Braising is the transformation of tough, collagen-rich cuts of meat into tender, deeply flavoured preparations through prolonged cooking in a small amount of… Braising (Braiser) →
7
This is where the dish lives or dies. With the sauce off the heat and confirmed below 80 °C, whisk in the reserved blood mixed with 1 tbsp cream in a slow, steady stream. Return the pan to the gentlest possible heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens to a dark, opaque, velvet consistency. It must not boil — a single rolling boil will coagulate the blood proteins into irretrievable granules and ruin the sauce entirely. Stir in the liver purée.
8
Return the hare pieces to the sauce and warm through without approaching a simmer. Arrange on a warmed serving dish. Spoon the sauce over generously. Place the croûtons, spread with any remaining liver purée, alongside. The finished surface should be uniformly dark, glossy, and opaque — not grainy, not split, not pale.
III

Quality Hierarchy

01
Reserve — A wild hare taken in season (October–January), blood collected at the kill and vinegared immediately, braised in a classified Burgundy or Rhône of the same character as the sauce.
02
Estate — A hung wild hare from a reputable game dealer, blood supplied by the butcher at time of purchase, a good-quality regional red wine for the marinade and braise.
03
Market — A young wild hare from a game supplier without blood; pig's blood substituted from a butcher — the flavour is less intense but the technique is preserved.
04
House — Farmed rabbit jointed and braised in the same manner; the dish loses the wild, iron-tinged depth that defines a true civet, but the method remains instructive.
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Smell. After 24 hours the marinade carries a deep, winey, slightly feral scent — the flesh has absorbed the aromatics throughout.
◇Sight. Browning is complete when every surface of the joint is mahogany, not golden; pale patches mean insufficient Maillard development.
◇Touch. A skewer meets no resistance when the braise is done; the meat begins to retract from the bone.
◇Sight. The finished sauce is dark as midnight, uniformly opaque, and coats the back of a spoon with a velvet sheen — any graininess or pallor signals the blood has overheated.
◇Where it lives or dies. The blood liaison must be added off the heat at 70–75 °C and never allowed to boil — a single boil scrambles the proteins and the sauce cannot be recovered.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
VI

What to Pour

The pairing
Blandy's 10 Year Old Malmsey Madeira
Blandy's · Madeira
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Fortified wine
From British Columbia

Nothing from British Columbia holds against this yet.

Without alcohol

No pour without alcohol holds against this yet.

Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →

The whole pairing
Pillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
← PreviousCivet de Chevreuil à l'AlsacienneOne standard · no exceptions