Last Sunday I shot a youngish warthog sow. The pig was unaware of me and the shot was a brain shot. It hung in the coldroom until Friday when I processed my meat. I saved one of the loins and both fillets and used it to make a starter for our meal on Friday evening. It was super simple and very delicious.

I cut the meat into thin strips, sort of strir-fry style. Put some sunflower oil in a flat-bottomed cast-iron pot and placed that on a bed of sekelbos coals. Hearing the impala rams in rut roaring in the distance does not add flavour to the meal but adds lightness to your heart and just makes you all-round more positive and appreciative. Perhaps that added to the enjoyment of the meal. When the oil was nice and hot I added the meat, seasoned with barbecue spice, and stir fried it for about 10 minutes or so until golden brown. I added two heaped tablespoons of German mustard and about a third of a cup of honey. Stirred through and let it simmer for a further 5-10 minutes for the moisture to reduce. When it was nice and thick and sticky I added salt to taste and VOILA .... delicious campfire honey-mustard warthog.

Sounds good !

Dimitri be the man.

That does sound good!

Just ate and now I am hungry again

I would love to try some of that!

sounds great

Does it taste like chicken?

Nope. It has a flavour of it's own. My personal opinion is that it is not too dissimilar to domestic pig in taste, only stronger/more flavorful, tougher and drier. Old boars, have a strong "warthog smell" which most people, including me, do not appreciate. But an old male wildebeest/impala/bushpig/domestic sheep/etc will also have a strong, often unappetizing, smell.

Some people describe warthog meat as "somewhere between pork and venison". The uncooked meat is a similar light colour to domestic pig which is similar to the colour of chicken, so there is an association with chicken, if you like Interestingly, our other wild pig species - the bushpig - has more of a red meat than a white meat when compared to warthog.

Most people seem to prefer turning their warthog/bushpig into salamis, russians or other sausage. However, I love the meat in curry, stew, honey-mustard stir-fry and sticky barbecue ribs in addition to the processed products. My late dad even turned a few warthogs into biltong when I was young and although the biltong was lighter in colour to the kudu/impala/blesbok/etc is was delicious and, for those who may be concerned, nobody ever got sick or picked up tapeworm or any other parasites. I don't think the bugs and parasites could withstand the salt and vinegar used in the curing process.

Last year during our lunch break on a wingshooting excursion a friend brought along some European wild boar chops, marinated in herbs, salt, pepper and lemon juice and we grilled those on a hot plate. They were really outstanding. However those were farmed animals and very fat. I'm not sure what a European wild boar living off the veld would taste like.

I imagine your feral pigs over there must taste good too?

As always, diet, gender, shot placement, stress or lack of stress and handling of carcass play a big role in the quality, taste and texture of the meat.