Rich hare ragu topped with parsnip and potato mash (a la Launceston Place, nearly)

After a fantastic tasting menu at Launceston Place, under Tristan Welch, the star of the show for me was a seriously rich and deep hare ragu, I thought I'd try to replicate it. I have no idea exactly what was in the original but I think it had little cubes of parsnip in the bottom and a sweet topping which I assumed was a potato/parsnip mash with a sprinkling of toasted pistachio which gave a nice nutty and crunchy contrast.

I had a whole hare but took off the length of loin, the tenderness of which would have been wasted in a ragu, and saved it for another dish.

I took very scrap of meat off the hare, you don't need to be a very skilled butcher to do this as the meat needs to be pretty finely chopped anyway so some regular chunks and scrapings off the bone are both fine.

Hare Ragu

1 Hare – all but loin, finely chopped

1 large Onion

2 cloves garlic

Olive oil

Flour

Bottle red wine and a bit (something reasonably gutsy, Italian seemed de rigeuer, or what ever they say for that in Italy)

Half tin tomatoes

Thyme

Nutmeg (loads)

Star anise

2 tablespoons tomato puree

Stock (1.5 pints water added to browned hare carcass, onion, carrot and celery reduced to ½ pint.

Salt, sugar and pepper to taste. (sugar cuts through the sharpness of the wine and tomato)

1-2 decent squares of good dark chocolate 

Pretty foolproof and standard ragu method.

Fry off the onion until starting to colour and add the garlic towards the end.  Set this aside and then brown the hare in the same, yet now empty, pan or a different one. give it some good colour and then add back in the onion, reheat and add in a desert spoon of flour and cook out.

Get the heat quite high so the wine, which is added next to the meat and onion, can boil pretty much immediately when gradually added and reduces quite quickly and doesn't just boil the pan contents.

Once the wine is quite reduced, you'll know when, add in the rest of the ingredients, save for the chocolate, and either simmer on the hob for a couple of hours or put in the oven at 130-150C uncovered. Keep an eye on it stirring occasionally until it is looking, and tasting, seriously rich. Adjust seasoning at the end as it should have concentrated a lot.

Stir in the chocolate and top with some simple mash. Perhaps top with some chopped pistachio (to give it the proper LP treatment) and flash under the grill to crisp up the top and toast the nuts.

Serve in a single dish but to be a bit posher put in individual large ramekins or those cool black Staub cocottes, as I did , maybe with some buttered greens on the side and definitely with a big red wine served in a glass the size of the kids goldfish bowl!

It wasn't exactly as I recall it but very close but its got to be rich. The mash will temper this a little so be brave and don't skimp on the wine. 

Alternatively forget the mash and serve with good quality pasta and go full on Iti. 

Can use venison which is more available and less gamey.