Wild or domestic rabbit browned and slow-smothered in onion gravy until fork-tender. Lean field-and-woods protein the Delta caught for free, dressed in Sunday gravy.
Rabbit was free protein in the rural Black South — caught with a trap, a stick, or a dog by men and boys who couldn't afford the butcher. Smothered in gravy, it became Sunday-worthy. It carries the memory of the field's edge and the woods as the family's grocery store.
Rabbit is one of the leanest meats available — very high in complete protein and low in saturated fat, with strong iron, B12, and selenium. For a community carrying heavy heart-disease burden, a lean game meat smothered in a modest gravy is a far better Sunday protein than fatty pork. The honest caveat is the gravy and rice it rides on; the rabbit itself is nearly ideal.
Soak rabbit in salted or buttermilk water to tenderize, then season and brown the pieces. Smother in an onion gravy (built from the browned bits and a little flour) and braise low and covered until the lean meat is tender, about an hour. Serve over rice. Because rabbit is so lean, low and slow with liquid prevents dryness.
Free, no account needed to ask.