Fried Rabbit with Fish Pepper Hot Honey
Spike Gjerde, the James Beard award-winning chef at restaurants like The Rakes Progress in Washington, D.C. and Woodberry Kitchen in Baltimore, approaches local sourcing with religious fervor. He forgoes olive oil and lemons, using locally grown and pressed oils and vinegars in their place. His team dries mint, lavender, peaches, and cherries—and even makes garlic powder. He refuses to buy from distributors, even when they buy from local growers, because he wants every penny to go the farm. “A lot of people say, ‘Wow, this is harder than I thought. Then they just call [giant distributor] Sysco. But it’s why we’re doing it,” Gjerde says. “Our job is to get more value back to growers.” At his restaurants, Gjerde uses fish pepper, a spicy heirloom chile, in all kinds of dishes. Here, the pepper infuses a hot honey that’s perfect for drizzling over breaded and fried rabbit loin. Look for loins online if you’re having trouble finding them in stores, or substitute two pounds boneless chicken thighs, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise.
