Bison is tasty! Bison meat is not at all gamey and tastes similar to beef, but sweeter and richer.
Bison is healthy! Bison is dense in nutrients, yet lower in lower in fat and cholesterol than beef, pork, and even chicken. It has high levels of protein, iron, Omega-3 fatty acids, and various minerals and other nutrients.
Bison is natural! The majority of bison meat is entirely grass-fed and free range, with little or no time in a feedlot. Grass-fed meat is typically lower in total fat and higher in healthy Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats than meat from animals who have been grain-finished in feedlots.
Although there are concerns that over-management of herds is increasing, most bison also are exposed to far fewer (if any) chemicals, drugs, or hormones than cattle. Purchasing bison with the label “Certified American Bison” guarantees that it has been raised without growth hormones, and has not been fed animal by-products or low levels of antibiotics.
Bison is environmentally sound! Provided the bison are stocked at appropriate levels, bison spread out across a pasture more evenly than cattle, so they graze more equally and are less likely to stress or overgraze certain areas of their pasture while ignoring others. They also eat a wider range of grass species than cattle, utilizing the range more efficiently, and are better winter foragers, so they rarely require supplementation with hay or grain (organic or otherwise). There are even accounts of bison pulling up weeds and playing with them!
Even their fondness for dust baths, which initially would seem undesirable and damaging to the range, is actually beneficial. Bison tear up small areas of pasture to create “blowouts” for dust baths. In traditional ranching, blowouts are discouraged because open ground does not feed cattle (or bison). However, as blowouts heal, they become home to a diversity of plant and animal species that can survive in their marginal environment. Discouraging blowouts has contributed to habitat loss that has put several of these species on the Endangered Species List. One, the blowout penstemon, is now one of the rarest plants in America.
Cooking Bison Meat
Bison meat can be used as a substitue for beef in everything from casseroles to pot roasts to steaks. However, because bison has a lower fat content than beef, it cooks faster and can easily be over-cooked. When cooking bison meat, go “low and slow.” Cook the meat at a lower temperature than you would for beef in order to slow the cooking process and prevent the meat from becoming tough.
The Intertribal Bison Cooperative recommends cooking bison meat at low or medium temperatures until the internal temperature reaches 155 to 170′F in order to ensure the most tender meat. Tender cuts of meat, such as sirloin, should be cooked using a dry heat method such as grilling, broiling, roasting, or stir-frying. Less tender cuts should be cooked in wet heat: braising, stewing, using a slow cooker or crock pot, etc.
You can also find bison cooking tips, recipes, and cookbooks at the National Bison Association and Bison Basics.
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