Bourbon & Bison Dish

Bourbon & Bison Dish Spread, For Your Man

Men like their meat, and a lot of them have an exceptional appreciation for bourbon, hence Bourbon and Bison dishes were created as a creative and gourmet man dish.  This is my version of what to serve your significant other when they crave frontier cowboy meat and smooth bourbon from the mid-south.  Be careful not to confuse your meal with Buffalo meat because there is a distinction to be made. Bison meat is also a nice choice if your man is into *fitness and weightlifting, because bison is usually leaner than beef (as compared to 80/20%), it's less calories and is higher in nutrients such as iron and vitamin B-12.  There can also be higher protein depending on the comparison of choice and select options. 

Bourbon & Bison Dish Serves 2:

1st Course: Starters - Iceberg Lettuce Wedge Salad with Cheddar Bay Biscuits

2nd Course: Appetizer - Bison Hatch Green Chili Quesadillas

3rd Course: Main Dish - Bison Strip Steak with Caramelized Onion Bourbon Sauce

4th Course: Side Dishes - Sweet Potato with Bourbon Butter and Brown Sugar & Parmesan Garlic Spinach

5th Course: Recommended Dessert: Bourbon Chocolate Hazelnut Mini-pies with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Libation: the "New" Old Fashioned

Starters: Iceberg Lettuce Wedge Salad with Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Salad Ingredients:

1/2 head of iceberg lettuce

2-3 strips of bacon, cooked, crumbled

1/2 cup diced fresh tomato

4 tbsp. preferred blue cheese dressing or other kind

salt & pepper to taste

Biscuit Ingredients:

I simply used a box of Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit mix, which calls for 1/4 cup of water, and 1/4 cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese and the box mix.  You can also add shredded cheese to any other biscuit mix and it will be comparable.

1. Cut the 1/2 head of lettuce in half, making two triangular wedge pieces and arrange on your serving salad plates.
2. Pour 2 tbsp. of dressing over each wedge.
3. Sprinkle bacon crumbs and diced tomatoes over the wedge and dressing.
4. Add salt and pepper if desired.
5. Follow instructions of biscuit mix according to the box.

Appetizer: Bison Hatch Green Chili Quesadillas

Ingredients:

3-4 fresh roasted Anaheim peppers (I buy these from a food truck vendor that does it fresh every day but you can buy fresh peppers, coat them with olive oil and grill them until they are charred on all sides, wrap in plastic and let sit for 30 minutes))

1-2 jalapeno peppers

8 oz Bison ground chuck

2 strips bacon

1 qrt of low-sodium chicken broth

*2 cans of diced tomatoes and habanero chilies (such as a brand like Ro-Tel) 

1/2 cup onion, minced

2 garlic cloves

2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt & pepper to taste

4 tbsp butter

2 1/2 tbsp flour (I use soy or whole wheat flour but all-purpose flour also works)

4 tortillas 

1/2 cup shredded Monterey pepper jack cheese

1. Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a pan over medium-high heat and stir in the flour.
2. Cook for about a minute and stir until mixture is smooth.  Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Prepare Anaheim peppers (roast if needed, instructions above) Cut off the stems and split the peppers open.
4. Remove the charred skin and seeds under a running faucet and dice the remainder of the chilies.
5. Put bison in a large pan and brown.  Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Remove from pan and set aside.
6. Cook bacon in the pan.  Remove bacon from pan and dice, but reserve the bacon grease in the pan.
7. Cook the onions and garlic for about 2-3 minutes.
8. Deglaze with the chicken stock.
9. Add the cans of tomatoes and habanero chilies, the bison meat and the bacon.
10. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.  Cover and let simmer on low heat for about an hour.
    
11.  Add the butter, flour mixture to thicken the mixture and stir.
12. Heat a separate pan, Take the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter and butter one side of each tortilla.
13. Put one tortilla on the hot pan, butter side down.
14. Add bison green chili mix almost to the edges of the tortilla.
15. Sprinkle monterey jack cheese over bison green chili mixture and over to the edge of the tortilla.
16. Cover with another tortilla, butter side up.
17. Cook until tortilla browns and crisps, and flip to other side to brown and crisp.
18. Repeat with other two tortillas.
19. Cut quesadillas into fourths.

Main Dish: Bison Strip Steak with Caramelized Onion Bourbon Sauce

Ingredients:

2 cuts of bison steaks

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 cup onion, minced

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 cup bourbon

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1. Heat up your grill
2. Season bison steaks with desired salt & pepper
3. Grill on each side to preferred rareness
4. In a sauce pan, heat oil and onions over a medium-high heat until onions brown and begin to caramelize.
5. Reduce heat to low, slowly add in bourbon
6. Cook until liquid is reduced by a third, about 10-15 minutes.
7. Add brown sugar, mustard and Worcestershire and stir until thick and bubbly.
8. Spoon sauce over bison steaks and serve.

Side Dishes: Sweet Potato with Bourbon Butter and Brown Sugar & Parmesan Garlic Spinach

Potato Ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes, thoroughly washed

2 tbsp of butter

1 tbsp of bourbon

2 tsp of brown sugar

Spinach Ingredients:

4 handfuls of fresh spinach

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup grated Parmesan & Romano cheese

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (optional)

1. Poke holes in both sweet potatoes and place on a microwave safe plate.
2. Cook on high for about 3-5 minutes, or until potatoes soften
3. Carefully remove from microwave (the potatoes will be hot) and slice potatoes down the center to open up (you may want to use a hot pad to hold in place to protect your fingers)
4. Squeeze potatoes to "bloom" out the insides.
5. In a microwave safe mug, melt butter completely in microwave, about 30-60 seconds. 
6. Add in bourbon and mix well.  Pour over sweet potatoes evenly.  Sprinkle with brown sugar.
7. Take a pan and add 3/4 cup of water, over a medium heat.
8. Cover, and cook until spinach becomes a brighter green and begins to wilt.  About 8-10 minutes.
9. Drain excess liquid from pan.
10. Toss spinach with olive oil, garlic powder and grated Parmesan cheese (less 2 tbsp. of grated cheese)  
11. Dish out on serving dish and sprinkle top with remainder of Parmesan cheese. 

*There are many ways to make this dish more healthy but still decadent: 1) Skip the biscuits, remove bacon or substitute with turkey bacon on wedge salad, and use yogurt-based blue cheese salad dressing. 2) Use low-carb tortillas. 3) Don't use bourbon and brown sugar in steak sauce and potato, use sugar free maple syrup instead to flavor potatoes. 4) just keep spinach steamed rather than adding oil and omit cheese.