Bison, which tastes very similar to beef, is very lean. We read that it is even leaner than chicken. Bison is usually a top choice for those that want the flavor of beef, but are looking for less fat and calories (but who would want less fat right??). Being that bison is very lean, it cooks a lot faster than classic beef burgers, so it’s best to use a lower temperature and keep an eye on the burgers until you get the timing right. Here is some information we found on bison.
With this recipe, I wanted to take the classic burger and “spice” things up with some jalapeno peppers. This is a simple recipe, that packs tons of flavor. This may possibly be my all time favorite burger recipe, and Bill really enjoyed it as well. We seeded the jalapenos before cooking, so the burgers were not very spicy. The seeds are where all the heat is in the pepper, so be sure to wear gloves, or thoroughly wash your hands after seeding your jalapenos. If you prefer a more spicy burger you can broil the peppers for a few minutes to get those hot pepper oils going, or you can include some of the seeds into the burger patties. We topped these burgers off with organic sun dried tomatoes packed in olive oil from Whole Foods. The flavors were perfect together. The sun dried tomatoes brought a slightly sweet flavor to the dish, and complimented these garlic and spicy burgers beautifully.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb ground bison
- 2 jalapeno peppers, seeds removed and minced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- Organic sun dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil for garnish.
*If you want a more spicy burger, roast your peppers prior to mincing. We would recommend roasting them under the broiler (high heat, about 500), bringing the oven rack to the top level, and broiling the peppers for 5 minutes.
Process:
- Preheat the grill to medium-high.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ground bison, garlic, jalapenos, salt, and pepper.
- Form ground meat and spices into 4 ounce patties.
- Place burger patties on grill and cook 4-5 minutes per side.
- Remove from grill, top with sun dried tomatoes and serve.
Even more brilliant. I love sun-dried tomatoes. So happy it's grilling season!
I'm trying this! but leaving the seeds in to make them more evil
Would never have thought of the sun dried tomatoes. Gonna definately try that.
FWIW – I'm pretty sure most bison, including commercial stuff at WF is grass fed. It is my understanding they don't thrive on grain at all so most producers avoid it. Not an expert by any stretch, but even the local grocery store here that carries bison says it's grass fed.
Thanks Derek-we actually did call around and spoke with the meat department at Whole Foods. They said that the bison is mostly grass fed, but grain finished. There is also some packaged ground bison at our local chain grocery store "Giant Eagle", and I did some research with that company as well and it was the same situation. That other company does sell grass fed bison, but the grain fed was the one available in our store. "Mostly" grass fed is probably better than primarily grain fed, but we still popped a few Carlson Cod Liver oil soft gels after! Better safe than sorry đŸ™‚
We used paleo smashed cauliflower and sauteed spinach as sides… avocado instead of sundried tomatoes! Yum!
Sounds delicious!