Saddle of hare w/ poivrade sauce

The day before:
Bone the hare or remove the fillets (keep bones and small pieces of flesh) ("trimmings").
Remove any hunting shots.
Put the fillets and trimmings in a hollow dish, and cover with red wine.
Cover and put in the fridge.

The eating day :

Peel, rinse and cut into tiny cubes ("mirepoix") onion and carrot.
Peel, degerm and crush the garlic cloves.
Crush the peppercorns.
Remove the saddle and trimmings from the marinade and drain them.
In a frying pan with 5 cl oil, sweat the carrot, onion, garlic, and the bouquet garni while mixing.
Then add the drained hare trimmings (keep the marinade).
Brown until coloring.
Deglaze with vinegar, scratching the bottom well with a spatula, and reduce to almost dry.
Pour the marinade, add the pepper, and reduce by half on medium heat (it is necessary that the aromas of the meat and mirepoix have time to pass in the sauce).
Then add the veal stock.
Mix well.
Pass the sauce with a fine sieve and press well.
Season (salt / pepper), and keep warm.

Pat dry the saddle with paper towels.
In a frying pan with 5cl of hot oil, quickly sear the hare fillets 1 to 2 min. Put the smaller fillets last so you do not overcook them. (they must remain rare, or almost).
Deglaze with cognac.
Remove the meat.
Pour the deglaze juice into the wine sauce.

Cut the fillets in the direction of the fibers, serve on warm plates, coat with poivrade sauce.

The saddle is made of the 2 loins from the bottom of the chops up to the tail.
"Poivrade" comes from poivre (pepper), used in the sauce.
With the rest of the hare, you can cook a jugged hare.