Messejana Hare Soup with Alentejo Bread

Messejana hare soup is made with an aromatic tomato, cumin and mint broth poured over slices of Alentejo bread. The meat is cooked separately with onion and garlic and served with chips: a game dish served in two parts, as described in the source.

A soup for game season

The Alentejo Gastronomic Charter recorded this recipe in Messejana, Aljustrel, during an interview with Maria Manuela Nobre Batista Rianço in 2012. The source places the preparation in game season. After the hare is cooked, the broth is used for the bread soups, while the meat is cooked separately in another pot instead of reducing everything to a single stew.

Serves: 4 people
Total time: about 2 hours and 30 minutes

Ingredients for 4 people

• 1 dressed hare, about 1.2 kg, cut into pieces
• 2 l water for cooking the hare
• 2 medium onions (about 300 g in total), one for the broth and the other for the sautéed mixtures
• 4 garlic cloves (about 20 g), chopped
• 350 g ripe tomatoes, chopped, 200 g for cooking and 150 g for the broth’s sautéed mixture
• 15 g fresh parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 10 g fresh mint
• 2 g ground cumin (about 1 level teaspoon)
• 60 ml olive oil, 30 ml for each sautéed mixture
• 300 g Alentejo bread, such as Pão Tradicional Alentejano – Forno de Lenha – 500g, thinly sliced
• 500 g potatoes, cut into chips
• 500 ml vegetable oil for frying the potatoes (most of it remains in the pot)
• 6 g salt and 1 g ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Cook the hare. Put the hare, 2 l water, 1 onion (150 g), the parsley, 200 g tomatoes and 4 g salt in a large pot. Bring to the boil, skim off the foam from the surface and simmer, covered, for about 75 to 100 minutes, until the meat comes away from the bones and is completely cooked. Remove the hare, strain the broth and set it aside. Once the meat is cool enough to handle, carefully remove all the bones.
2. Prepare the soup broth. Chop half of the second onion (75 g) and 2 garlic cloves (10 g). Heat 30 ml olive oil in a pot, sauté the onion and garlic for 5 minutes, then add the remaining 150 g tomatoes and the bay leaf. Cook for 8 minutes. Pour in the strained hare broth and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Add the cumin and 5 g mint, taste and add the remaining salt only if necessary.
3. Cook the meat separately. Chop the other half of the onion (75 g) and the remaining 2 garlic cloves (10 g). Heat the remaining 30 ml olive oil in a wide frying pan and sauté them for 5 minutes. Add the boned hare and 1 g pepper; cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring, until the meat is thoroughly hot and slightly reduced.
4. Fry the potatoes. Heat the 500 ml oil in a deep pot to about 170 °C. Fry the potato sticks in batches for 6 to 8 minutes, until golden and tender inside. Drain them on paper towels.
5. Assemble the soups. Divide the bread slices among four bowls, pour the hot broth over them and distribute the remaining 5 g mint. Serve the cooked hare meat and chips on the side, boned.

Tips for the hare and bread

The hare may need more cooking time depending on its age and size: look for tender, fully cooked meat rather than relying only on the clock. Bone it carefully before serving. Pour the broth over the bread only when you are about to serve, so the slices retain some structure.

Wine pairing

Try Vidigueira Reserva Tinto DOC with the hare. The wine description mentions ripe black fruit and a balsamic note, which complement the intensity of the game meat; serve the wine with the meat and broth at the table.

Make-ahead and storage

You can cook and bone the hare in advance. Store the meat and broth in covered containers in the refrigerator and consume within 2 days. Reheat both thoroughly, then prepare the bread and fry the potatoes.

Frequently asked questions

Why is the meat served separately?

That is how the recorded recipe organizes the serving: the broth is poured over the bread soups, while the cooked hare accompanies them with chips.

Can I serve the hare with the bones?

For an easier-to-eat bowl of soup, we bone the meat in this adaptation and carefully check that no small bones remain.

More game recipes

Pão Tradicional Alentejano de Forno de Lenha gives the soups substance. For another hare preparation, see our Évora-style escabeche hare.

Source

Alentejo Gastronomic Charter (2013), p. 657. Hare soup recorded in Messejana, Aljustrel, during an interview with Maria Manuela Nobre Batista Rianço by Vera Cara Roxa (ESDIME), in 2012.

Recipe recorded in Baixo Alentejo, adapted by Herdade do Estacal for the “À Mesa com o Alentejo” blog. The source mentions one hare but does not quantify the remaining ingredients or timings. We defined the quantities for four people, the cooking time and the boning instructions to guide serving; we preserved the broth over bread and the cooked hare served separately with chips.

Illustrative image generated for this article.