Fenek Moqli

Maltese Fried Rabbit

A traditional Maltese fried rabbit dish, marinated then cooked with garlic, white wine, and herbs until golden and fragrant.

Prep: 20 minutes (plus at least 1 hour marinating) Cook: 35-40 minutes Servings: 4 people
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Watercolour illustration of golden fried rabbit pieces with garlic, parsley and lemon.

Ingredients

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Measures: 1 tbsp = 15ml; 1 tsp = 5ml. For local ingredient names and substitutions, see our guide to Maltese ingredients abroad.

Instructions

  1. Marinate: Season rabbit pieces with salt, pepper, bay leaf, and dried herbs. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and lemon juice. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
  2. Brown the rabbit: Heat olive oil in a wide heavy pan over medium heat. Add rabbit pieces and fry until well browned on all sides, about 15-20 minutes total. Turn occasionally so they develop a golden crust.
  3. Add garlic and wine: Add sliced garlic and the chilli flakes, if using, and cook gently without burning. Pour in white wine and let it reduce for 3-4 minutes. Lower heat, cover loosely, and cook another 15-20 minutes until tender.
  4. Finish: Increase heat briefly to crisp slightly if needed. Sprinkle generously with fresh parsley. Adjust seasoning and squeeze a little more lemon if desired.

Fenek Moqli is a Maltese fried rabbit dish. In this version, the meat is marinated, then cooked with garlic, white wine, and herbs. Serve it as a main course with potatoes and bread; the cultural note below explains how rabbit can also form part of a longer fenkata meal.

Compare this pan-cooked version with rabbit stew and plan the wider meal in the Maltese rabbit guide.

How It’s Traditionally Served

  • As a rabbit main course, with a separate pasta starter if you are planning a longer meal
  • With fried potatoes
  • With crusty Maltese bread
  • Sometimes with a simple green salad

Traditional Notes & Tips

  • The flavour should be garlicky but balanced
  • It is rustic, not battered or breadcrumbed
  • Some cooks use lard instead of olive oil for a more traditional countryside taste

Try it in Malta & Gozo

These restaurants list this dish or a related version on their published menus. Our recipe is an independent home version.

  • Il-Barri — Mġarr, Malta. Rabbit fried with garlic and onions. Our pan-cooked version uses garlic and white wine.
  • Ta’ Kris — Gżira, Malta. Rabbit. Its rabbit is fried with garlic and rosemary, then simmered in red-wine gravy; our version uses white wine.
  • Diar il-Bniet — Dingli, Malta. Fenek moqli bit-tewm. Garlic rabbit is the connection to our pan-cooked recipe.
  • Rubino — Valletta, Malta. Fenek moqli. The sample menu lists the fried-rabbit dish; accompaniments can vary.
  • Ta’ Vestru — Qala, Gozo. Fried rabbit. Fried rabbit finished with garlic and herbs.

Explore Maltese restaurants and their menus. Menus checked 28 October 2026; confirm availability directly.

Fenek Moqli and the fenkata table

Frying and stewing are different ways to prepare rabbit for a fenkata. A longer rabbit meal may start with spaghetti in rabbit sauce, followed by rabbit for sharing. Fried potatoes, salad and bread also suit this garlic-and-wine version.