coniglio

Rabbit is fairly popular throughout Italy. The Marche boasts one of the more elaborate recipes, coniglio imporchettato (deboned rabbit stuffed with truffles and sausage) and another recipe, coniglio alla 'ngip e 'ngiap or 'ncip 'nciap (similar to the dish with chicken).

It's also a favourite in Sicily, where you might see it as cunigghiu. The Sicilians have several recipes for rabbit, including rabbit in agrodolce (also known as alla stimpirata, with potatoes, onions, peppers, green olives, white wine vinegar, sugar and capers), or alla cacciatora (with onions, garlic, green olives, pine nuts, raisins, red wine, parsley and tomatoes) or al cioccolato (with vegetables and chocolate).

In Emilia-Romagna they make coniglio saporito (rabbit stew with chicken livers, anchovies and capers). Liguria's coniglio alla Ligure is braised with pine nuts and olives. On the island of Ischia in the Bay of Naples, coniglio all’ischitana is sautéed with white wine, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chili peppers and plenty of herbs.

Two endangered Italian rabbits are included in the Presidium: the coniglio da fossa di Ischia, or Ischia cave rabbit, raised in hutches in the volcanic rock on the island in the Bay of Naples (Campania) and the coniglio grigio di Carmagnola (Piedmont).