Rabbit is truly underrated as a meat. It's lean, healthy and tasty. All it needs is brining and a bit of love on the smoker!
Method
Combine all the brine ingredients in a container with a lid and mix until the salt and sugar has dissolved. Submerge rabbit in the brine. Refrigerate for between 1-24 hours. Brining helps keep the rabbit moist and brings out the flavours.
Preheat smoker to 120°C (250°F). To keep the temperature low, use only one-third of a chimney starter of coals. Add Hickory wood chunks for extra depth of flavour.
Remove rabbit from brine (throw away brine). Rinse rabbit and pat dry.
At this point – you may wish to butterfly your rabbit. Here are instructions on how to butterfly your rabbit that has a few pictures to illustrate.
Put your rabbit in the smoker.
Add water to the water bowl to keep the rabbit juicy. Basting the rabbit with melted butter or mopping it with your favourite BBQ sauce a couple of times throughout the cook will help keep the rabbit moist and flavoursome.
Smoke for around 2 hours, or until internal temperature reaches 77°C (170°F). Take the internal temperature from the fattest part of the rabbit.
Remove from the smoker. Rest before carving.