Wild boar Sardinian style

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 1 kg game meat (wild boar, from the leg)
• 500 ml red wine, Sardinian
• 125 ml vinegar (red wine vinegar)
• 25 ml balsamic vinegar
• 1 orange(s), untreated, juice and peel cut into thin strips
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 small carrot(s)
• 1 stalk celery
• 2 cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ bunch rosemary
• ½ bunch thyme
• olive oil
• 30 g pine nuts, roasted
• 1 tbsp butter
• 6 figs, fresh
• salt and pepper
• 160 ml Game stock
• 100 ml cream

Instructions

Working time approx. 50 minutes; Rest period approx. 1 day; Total time approx. 1 day 50 minutes

Cinghiale in agrodolce – sweet and sour

Place the red wine, vinegar, balsamic vinegar, orange juice, half the orange zest, and the bay leaves in a saucepan. Roughly chop the onions, carrots, and celery and add them. Place the herbs and cloves in a tea infuser, seal, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, set aside, and let cool. In the meantime, cut the meat into 3-4 cm cubes and place them in the completely cooled marinade, ensuring everything is covered. Let it marinate for 24 hours. Remove the meat, dry thoroughly, and sear it in batches in oil on all sides, seasoning with salt and pepper. Place the meat in a suitable casserole dish, pour on 3/4 of the marinade, pour on the remaining 1/4 of the game stock to restore the original liquid level, and simmer gently for about 1.5 hours. Halve the figs and sauté them lightly in butter, cut-side down, in a non-stick pan. After 2-3 minutes, add the rest of the marinade and reduce slightly, then set aside. At the end of the cooking time, pour the marinade through a sieve into another pan, remove the tea strainer, discard all marinade ingredients, and reduce the liquid to about 1/3. Season with salt and pepper, and add 100 ml of cream if desired. Bring back to a brief boil and then return the figs to the meat through a sieve. Gently heat the fig halves, carefully remove them from the marinade, and add them to the meat. Scatter the other half of the orange peel strips and pine nuts over the meat. Serve with ciabatta bread. Another side dish, albeit un-Italian, is gnocchi, tagliatelle, or Sardinian malloreddus. These are gnocchi with saffron added to the dough, giving them a beautiful yellow color. Serve the wine that was also used for the marinade.