Put this on your to-do list: acquire a wild boar chop. Ideally, it should be at least two inches thick. If you’re really hard core, shoot the wild boar yourself; it’s not only permitted but encouraged in many parts of Canada.
Next, acquire a cast-iron skillet. Again, if you’re hard core, strip and season it yourself.
Now, my point. Get some Smokey Bourbon Tongue Spank ($8). In a nutshell, it brings smoky heat. In more than a nutshell, it’s sweet with chipotle peppers, full with garlic and bourbon, and finishes with a long, slow burn courtesy of ghost and habanero peppers. Chipotle, ghost, and habaneros in one blend? Are these people mad?
Anyway, you have your Tongue Spank. Now, make a compound butter. Why not just rub it directly to the chop? Because that cast iron will be searing hot, and we don’t want to burn our spices. If you have a smoker, rub away.
So, chop a pound of butter into small chunks. Then, put three tablespoons of olive oil into a bowl. Add an ounce of your Tongue Spank. In a food processor, whip your chunks of butter at medium speed until it lightens in colour. This should take five minutes. Now, add the oil and Tongue Spank mixture. Whip for another couple of minutes. Your butter’s done, but you’ve made way more than you need for one wild boar chop. Once you take what you need for that, roll the rest of your butter up into a log with a baking sheet. Wrap it and store it in the fridge—you’ll be using it again before long.
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Get your cast iron searing hot on the range. Spread your compound butter on both sides of your wild boar chop. Sear both sides in the cast iron—you want it nice and brown. Sear the edge too. Finish in the oven. Check it with your thermometer. Medium is 140°F—keep in mind, you’ll have to pull it off ten degrees sooner and let it rest.
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Dave Robson is the editor of DailyXY. He spends his time reading books, drinking Scotch, and smoking cigars.
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Photo courtesy of stu_spivack.
