Bison is not only healthful and tasty — choosing bison meat helps support the restoration of a native ruminant species, meaning more acres devoted to restoration agriculture!
Sponsored by Dr. King’s Carolina Bison
Photo by Adobe Stock/Darren Baker
On April 27, 2016, the United States Congress passed The National Bison Legacy Act, and adopted the bison as our national mammal. In response, Dave Carter, the Executive Director of the National Bison Association, stated, “The National Mammal Declaration not only recognizes the historic role of bison in America, it celebrates the resurgence of bison as an important part of the American environment, diet, and an emerging part of the agricultural economy.
At Dr. King’s® Carolina Bison®, we’ve been committed to preserving the majestic bison beginning in 1985 when Dr. Frank King, a doctor of naturopathy and chiropractic medicine, began raising bison.
Today, on multiple farms, we raise hundreds of North American bison (Bison bison), not only because of the importance of this ancient breed, but also for the health benefits of its meat. At Dr. King’s Farms in Leicester, NC, we bring in western native prairie grass to nourish our bison. This western prairie grass is far superior in food value to local grasses.
Grass-fed bison have less than a quarter of the total fat of industrial beef and it’s even leaner than grass-fed beef. A serving of bison meat is also a rich source of your daily values of vitamins, such as riboflavin (14 percent), niacin (16 percent), B-6 (17 percent), and B-12 (41 percent), and minerals such as iron (56 percent), phosphorous (18 percent), zinc (21 percent), and selenium (43 percent).
Beyond the many health benefits, bison meat is wonderfully flavorful! If you haven’t tasted bison meat yet, you’re in for a delicious, healthy treat! Here’s a Szechuan Bison Stir Fryrecipe to get you started.
Chef Greg’s Szechuan Bison Stir Fry
Ingredients:
MEAT & MARINADE
• 1.5 lb. Bison flank or sirloin
• 1 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoons Mirin, sweet rice wine for cooking
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
VEGETABLES
• 3 celery stalks, julienned into thin, long strips
• 1/2 cup carrots, shredded
• 3 inch green onions sliced thinly, on a diagonal, into 1/2 pieces
SZECHUAN SAUCE
Mix together:
• 1 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoons Chinese 5-spice powder
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
• 1” ginger root (fresh), grated or very finely minced
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoons Sriracha sauce
• 1 tablespoons Rice wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Hoisin sauce
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced
Instructions:
1. Slice bison, across the grain, into 1/4 inch thick strips and place in a large plastic bag.
2. Add mirin and soy sauce and massage into the meat. Add cornstarch, seal the bag and toss/massage to coat the meat.
3. Let meat marinate for about 10 minutes.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients and set aside.
5. Slice vegetables and set aside.
6. Add sesame oil to wok or large sauté pan and heat over medium-high heat.
7. Add bison to hot pan, just enough to cover the bottom of the pan – you’ll probably want to do at least 2 batches – and sauté about 2-3 minutes. Remove bison to a plate and cook remaining batches.
8. Add sliced vegetables to the hot pan and cook about 1-3 minutes (depending on how tender you want them), stirring often.
9. Pour in Szechuan sauce and cook about a minute, until slightly thickened.
10. Add cooked bison and turn to coat in the sauce.
11. Serve over jasmine rice.
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