The Omnivorous Fish

… sounds like a song. Hm.

Very often, when I have leftovers, they sit in the fridge until they start to move around on their own, with the exception of self-evidently useful things like ham or chicken. Sometimes that kills you, though, like when you make lapin a la moutarde one night and 3/4 of it languishes in the fridge. Well, anytime you have any sort of moistened meat left over, but it’s not enough to feed anybody, just remember: that is the stuff of legendary pasta sauces.

Pappardelle with Rabbit

A traditional celebratory country meal in Italy will be comprised of several courses, but all the meat elements will come from one meager cut, usually of the less glamorous variety. I once had a delectable meal of cold antipasti, homemeade strozzapreti with guazzeto made from the shin meat of a water buffalo leg, and then the braised leg itself with potatoes and beans. It is one harmonius theme, and symphonic in its effect.

Anyway, the point is a simple braise can be stretched into a very impressive sauce for pasta, especially wide, sauce-scooping varieties like fettuce and pappardelle. When these pastas are made fresh, the experience is sublime. And let’s face it, with a little practice, pasta is a breeze.

Rabbit meat for sauce

I moistened the meat with a little milk and cooked it gently. When it was about ready, I dropped the moments old pappardelle in, and- whammo- they were done. Good stuff.I didn’t even drain them, I grabbed them out of the water with a fork. Old school.