Stuffat tal-Fenek is a type of rabbit stew in Maltese cuisine. [1] It is the national dish of Malta. [1] [2] It is typically slow-cooked or braised with wine, tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves, cloves, salt, pepper and vegetables. [1] [3] It is sometimes served in two courses by pouring the sauce over pasta as a first course and serving the rabbit and vegetables as a main course. [4]
The dish may have originated as a form of symbolic resistance to the hunting restrictions imposed by the Knights of St John. [5] The dish gained in popularity after the lifting of restrictions in the late 18th century (and by which time the indigenous breed, Tax-Xiber, had multiplied and prices dropped) and after local domestication of rabbits, a practice which may have been imported from France. [6]
