Bison Meat Sauce Food

EASY CROCKPOT BISON BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat 1 tsp olive oil. When oil is hot, add ground bison. Brown meat 3-4 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Pro Tip: When meat is about halfway browned, use a potato masher to get the meat nice and finely "chopped." It works so well!
• When meat is browned, add it to the crockpot. To the same pan, add remaining 1 tsp olive oil. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes until veggies begin to get slightly soft. Then, add tomato paste and cook another 1-2 minutes.
• Add wine to the pan and scrape off any brown bits from the bottom. Bring mixture to a boil and cook 1-2 minutes.
• Transfer everything in the skillet to your crockpot with the meat. Add crushed tomatoes, beef bullion, bay leaf and sugar to the crockpot. Give everything a big stir.
• Cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high 3-4 hours. Then, stir in milk/half and half, if using. Stir well and season with salt, if needed.

BISON MEAT SAUCE

Steps:

• Sauté the meat with the onions and half the garlic. I add the salt and pepper here.
• When meat is browned, add the rest of the vegetables, tomato paste, diced tomatoes and spices.
• Cook for an hour on low heat.
• Turn off the burner and add the other half of the garlic and the sugar.
• Serve with pasta -- or anything else.

BISON BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• Heat a medium Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and the ground bison. Cook, breaking apart the meat into very small pieces with a wooden spoon until the meat is lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the carrot, red onion and garlic to the pan and stir to combine. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and cook for 3 minutes or until the vegetables are soft and fragrant. Deglaze with the white wine, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with the wooden spoon. Simmer for 5 minutes or until almost completely reduced. Stir in the hand crushed tomatoes and nestle in the Parmesan rind and basil. Season with the remaining salt. Reduce the heat the medium and simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally for 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Season generously with salt. Add the pasta to the water and cook for 2 minutes less than directed, about 6 minutes. Using tongs, add the pasta directly from the pasta water to the sauce. Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese directly to the bare pasta along with the butter. Toss the pasta with the sauce to coat, thinning as needed with the pasta water to ensure it clings to the pasta. Serve drizzled with more olive oil and sprinkled with more Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese if desired.

MIDDLE EASTERN BISON MEATBALLS WITH CILANTRO-YOGURT SAUCE

Steps:

• For cilantro-yogurt sauce:
• Toast all seeds in small skillet over medium heat until aromatic and slightly darker in color, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Cool. Finely grind seeds in spice mill or coffee grinder. Place cilantro and all remaining ingredients in blender. Add 1 teaspoon ground seeds and process until smooth sauce forms, scraping down sides frequently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover sauce and chill. Reserve remaining ground seeds for meatballs. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated. Store remaining ground seeds in airtight container at room temperature.
• For meatballs:
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until soft, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes (do not brown). Cool. Toss breadcrumbs with milk in small bowl to moisten. Place cooled onion mixture, breadcrumb mixture, reserved ground seeds from cilantro-yogurt sauce, jalapeño, and yogurt in processor. Using on/off turns, process until coarse puree forms. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Add bison, egg, cilantro, sage, 1 teaspoon coarse salt, pepper, and allspice. Using hands or fork, mix until just blended. Using damp hands, form bison mixture into 1 1/4-inch balls. DO AHEAD: Can be made 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
• Preheat oven to 300°F. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Working in 2 batches, cook meatballs until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer meatballs to rimmed baking sheet. Place in oven to keep warm up to 15 minutes.
• Serve meatballs with cilantro-yogurt sauce for dipping.
• *A thick yogurt; sold at some supermarkets, specialty foods stores (such as Trader Joe's and Whole Foods), and Greek markets. If unavailable, place plain whole-milk yogurt in cheesecloth-lined strainer set over large bowl. Cover and chill 4 hours to drain.