flipRoast Wild Boar with Honey and Wild Thyme
Roast Wild Boar with Honey and Wild Thyme
Why this dish? King of Macedonia, Alexander II belonged to an aristocracy where one could not recline at the banquet without having killed one's boar with a spear. Serving the hunted beast in the center of the royal couch at Aigai was the very assertion of the Argead power.
A piece of wild boar roasted slowly, rubbed with honey, mountain thyme, and salt, crispy on the outside and tender inside — the king of dishes at Macedonian feasts.
Approach, stranger, and look at this beast: I forced it myself in the oak groves of Bermion, spear high, as is the custom of my fathers. At my table in Aigai, no one reclines on the kline unless he has felled the boar with his own hand. It is coated with the honey of our bees and the thyme of the heights, turned over the coals until the crackling sings under the tooth. Eat, and you will know why Macedonia does not bend.
- •Wild boar shoulder — one piece for the household (game meat, heart of the feast)
- •Honey from Bermion — by the ladleful (glaze and shine)
- •Mountain thyme — a handful (resinous fragrance)
- •Sea salt — as needed (seasoning)
- •Olive oil — a drizzle (basting)
Roast Wild Boar with Honey and Wild Thyme
A piece of wild boar roasted slowly, rubbed with honey, mountain thyme, and salt, crispy on the outside and tender inside — the king of dishes at Macedonian feasts.
Why this dish? King of Macedonia, Alexander II belonged to an aristocracy where one could not recline at the banquet without having killed one's boar with a spear. Serving the hunted beast in the center of the royal couch at Aigai was the very assertion of the Argead power.
Approach, stranger, and look at this beast: I forced it myself in the oak groves of Bermion, spear high, as is the custom of my fathers. At my table in Aigai, no one reclines on the kline unless he has felled the boar with his own hand. It is coated with the honey of our bees and the thyme of the heights, turned over the coals until the crackling sings under the tooth. Eat, and you will know why Macedonia does not bend.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wild boar shoulder — one piece for the household (game meat, heart of the feast)
- Honey from Bermion — by the ladleful (glaze and shine)
- Mountain thyme — a handful (resinous fragrance)
- Sea salt — as needed (seasoning)
- Olive oil — a drizzle (basting)
Ingredients
- Wild boar shoulder (or farmed pork shoulder) — 1.5 kg (main meat)
- Liquid honey — 4 tbsp (glaze)
- Fresh thyme — 1 bunch (fragrance)
- Coarse salt — 2 tsp (seasoning)
- Olive oil — 3 tbsp (basting)
Method
- The day before, rub the meat with salt, stripped thyme leaves, and olive oil, then refrigerate.
- Preheat the oven to 150°C. Place the meat on a rack over a dish with a little water.
- Roast covered (parchment paper then foil) for 3 hours, basting with juices every 40 minutes.
- Uncover, brush generously with honey, increase heat to 210°C, and caramelize for 20 minutes.
- Let rest 15 minutes before slicing, and serve with the cooking juices.
How it was made : At the Macedonian court, game was roasted whole on a spit over large hearths, with honey and wine used both as marinade and glaze. Boar hunting was a rite of passage: Aristotle reports that a Macedonian noble had to have killed a boar without a net to earn the right to eat reclining.
The contemporary twist : Serve the meat on an olive-wood board, scattered with roasted thyme flakes and a drizzle of warm honey, a 'table of Aigai' revisited.
Sources : Athenaeus of Naucratis, Deipnosophistae (Macedonian banquets) · Aristotle, Politics (Macedonian hunting customs)
Alexander II of Macedon · Charactorium
