Boar with Black Sauce

Braised boar with a medieval spiced wine sauce with fruit and almonds

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City/Region: Germany

Time Period: 1553

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Christmas has been a time for feasting for centuries, and in medieval Europe, some of those feasts began with a boar’s head. It would’ve been hollowed out and stuffed with other meat, fruit, and spices, then boiled, but could also be a pig’s head with tusks added, or a pie or cake in the shape of a boar’s head.

I couldn’t find a boar’s head (believe me, I tried), so I’m using boar shoulder instead. You could really use pork for this and it would still be fantastic. The sauce is the star and the meat is simply the vessel for it. It’s basically spiced wine made into a sauce with bits of fruit and almond and I absolutely loved it. The sweetness complements the gaminess of the boar and the spices are warming and delicious. Thickening the sauce with flour and fat was a cutting edge technique at the time that feels very modern, but the flavors are wonderfully medieval.

“Seasoned well with pepper, ginger and a little cloves, nutmeg and saffron…laid on a grate and basted with wine…Afterwards make a black…sauce with it.
First…you should heat up a little fat and brown a small spoonful of wheat flour in the fat and after that put good wine into it and good cherry syrup, so that it becomes black, and sugar, ginger, pepper, cloves, and cinnamon, grapes, raisins and finely chopped almonds. And taste it, however it seems good to you, make it so…Spread it with mince of apples, almonds and raisins. Then you have a lordly dish.”

— Das Kochbuch der Sabina Welserin by Sabina Welserin, 1553

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Ingredients:

Boar

• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• A pinch of saffron threads
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Boar roast, I used shoulder
• Oil or lard, for frying
• 1 cup red wine
• Raisins, almonds, and minced apples, for serving

Black Sauce

• 1 1/2 tablespoons fat, I used beef tallow
• 1 1/2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups (350 ml) red wine
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) cherry syrup*
• 1/2 cup grapes
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

*If using store bought, make sure that the only ingredients are cherries, water, and sugar.

Instructions:

1. For the boar: Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
2. Whisk the pepper, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, saffron, and salt together. Rub the mixture into the meat.
3. Heat some fat in a pan that’s deep enough to fit the lid on over the meat. Sear the meat on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
4. Pour the wine over the top of the meat and quickly cover with a lid.
5. Set the pan in the oven for about 2 hours, or until the temperature is 205°F (95°C). You might want a lower temperature depending on your cut of meat.
6. When the meat is done, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.
7. For the black sauce: Heat the fat in a saucepan until it’s quite hot. Quickly stir the flour in. Cook it, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes or until it starts to thicken and darken.
8. Add the wine and stir vigorously. Once they’re incorporated, stir in the cherry syrup and simmer for 5 minutes.
9. Stir in the spices, grapes, raisins, and almonds. Simmer for another 10 minutes to thicken. Once it’s thickened, take it off the heat.
10. To serve: Carve the meat after it has rested. Lay the medley of raisins, almonds, and minced apples around the meat, drizzle with the black sauce, and serve it forth.

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