Wild boar with swede, cabbage & caraway

Method

1. Place a medium pan of salted water on a high heat and bring to the boil. Add the swede and cook for 20–30 minutes or until it’s tender. Remove the pan from the heat and use a slotted spoon to transfer the swede to a blender. Add half the butter and just enough cooking liquid to allow the swede to whiz up to a velvety purée. Spoon the mixture into a clean pan, stir in the cream and season well with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm.
2. Cut two thick wedges from the cabbage, each 4–5cm thick at the outside edge, leaving the stem of the cabbage in place. Season the wedges and the boar fillet all over with plenty of salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan over a medium–high heat. When it’s hot, add the cabbage wedges and the fillet and cook for 4–5 minutes, turning to cook the meat and wedges evenly on all sides, until the cabbage has taken on some colour. When the cabbage is ready, turn off the heat, leaving everything in the pan and allowing the meat to rest where it is for 4–5 minutes.
3. While the meat is resting, melt the remaining butter in a small pan over a medium heat. When it’s bubbling add the garlic and caraway seeds and cook gently for 1–2 minutes, until the garlic is just starting to toast around its edges.
4. Divide the swede purée equally between two plates. Cut the boar fillet into thick slices and arrange a few slices on top of each plate of purée, finish with a wedge of fried cabbage. Spoon over the garlic and caraway butter and serve straight away.