Bison are considered an emblematic animal of North America. Big, majestic, historically significant—what’s not to like?
Well, as a moose, I resent them. And so, I take special delight in eating them. Bison are also very lean and high in iron, which will be great when I stop being so Phatty and go lift some weights at the gym. In the meantime, I will turn the bison into a sumptuous meal.
Like most unconventional meats, bison has a reputation for being tough and gamy. However, this is less true for store-bought bison. Nevertheless, the gamy reputation encouraged a potent aromatic spice rub on grilled bison. As an afterthought, creating a sauce for the bison yielded a second treat: braised bison.
a bold spice rub for game
Sorry traditionalists and gin-lovers, I didn’t have any juniper berries when I made this one. Lots of whole spices to preserve their flavor, ground up together with your mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Aromatic, earthy and spicy.
- 1 1/2 tablespoons of coarse sea salt
- 1/2 tablespoon of rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon ground annatto seed (achiote)
- 1/2 teaspoon whole mustard seed
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ground pasilla (dark red) chile powder
- 2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon whole coriander seed
Tools for the job:
- grill
- tongs
- saucepan
- knife
- cutting board
- mortar & pestle or spice grinder
- bison tri-tip (about 2 pounds)
- canola or olive oil
- 4 cups bison, beef or vegetable stock
- 1 cup robust red wine (try Tempranillo!)
- freshly cracked pepper
- 1/4 cup of bold spice rub for game
Let’s get down to business. Warm your stock in a small-medium saucepan over low heat. Trim any undesirable pieces of the tri-tip such as the tough, silvery loin membrane and toss those in the stock. It’s OK if there was a little meat on the trimmings, you’ll recover it.
Once it’s trimmed, smother it with the spice rub. Don’t be shy, get your fingers into it. Make it remember why it’s called a rub! The rub listed here isn’t extremely spicy so it’s safe on hands.
Light a fire in your grill and let your meat relax an absorb the rub at room temperature while the coals heat up. This will prevent the sudden heat from shocking the meat which might shrivel it and cause it to cook unevenly. While you are waiting for the grill, add some wine and ground black pepper to the stock.
When the coals are ready, dump them in a heap and wipe the grill grate down carefully with oil, then toss the meat on the grill. Cook uncovered for 6 minutes on the first side, then turn it over, move it away from the center of the coals and cover it. Let it cook for another 10 minutes. Of course these times are approximate and tend to vary based on meat thickness, fire temperature, wizardry, etc. The best way to judge doneness is with a meat thermometer, cooking to between 120 and 180 degrees depending on desired doneness. It should be dark and crusty on the outside when it’s done.
Now you can pull your bison off the grill and let it rest a few minutes. Hopefully it took you a while to do all of this, allowing the stock/wine mix you had cooking to reduce down to less than half the original amount. This will also have braised the trimmings into spectacularly tender bits of deliciousness. Carve thin slices of the grilled bison, serve with the reduced stock and toss some of the braised bison on there while you’re at it. Serve with steamed broccoli and spinach, texas toast and finish off the rest of that tempranillo you poured in the sauce.
Take that, bison!
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