Pork and thyme are a great combination.

Ingredients

• 4 bay leaves
• 4 large sprigs fresh thyme
• 4 x 150 gram pieces thick pork loin steaks, well trimmed
• freshly ground black pepper
• dash oil
• 2 juicy, ripe pears
• 100 grams dried figs
• ¼ cup sweet sherry
• 1½ cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp prepared wholeseed mustard
• pepper to season

Method

1. Place a bay leaf and sprig of thyme on top of each pork loin steak and tie with string to secure. Season well with pepper.
2. Heat the oil in frying pan and add the pork fillets. Turn quickly to brown evenly on all sides. Transfer to a 180ºC oven for 15 minutes. Serve with the Fig and Pear Sauce.
3. Fig and Pear Sauce
4. Peel, core and dice pears finely. Place in a saucepan with the figs and sherry and cook over a moderate heat until the sherry has reduced to 2 tablespoons. Add the chicken stock and mustard and simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce is has reduced by half.