Bison Burgers – Montana

Jayne: The closest I’ve come to Montana is through the Walt Longmire novels, which take place in next door Wyoming.  They share Yellowstone Park, a tip of which extends into Montana.  The author, Craig Johnson, describes the western landscape with love, respect and awe – the prairie and mountains with their endless harsh and spectacular beauty.  No surprise that bison is big in Montana.   

There used to be about 60 million of these nearly 2000 pound, chocolate-colored, shaggy-haired beasts in the U.S. and Montana is home to many of the 500,000 remaining.  Conservation is a hot issue in Montana, Wyoming and the Dakotas.   

Before the COVID19 pandemic, upwards of 7.5 million pounds of Bison meat was sold in the U.S.. Some call Bison the original red meat.  While closely related to cattle, Bison is steadily growing in popularity as a healthier protein that is also more sustainable.  It is leaner than beef with fewer calories and is “organic”, meaning no drugs or hormones are used.  The National Bison Association has a resolution against their use.

The meat tastes lighter and a little sweeter than beef.  It isn’t gamey.   We definitely noticed the milder flavor.  We compared Bison to Beef like the difference between medium roasted and dark roasted coffees.   Both delicious and matter of preference. 

We built the burger with two, thinner patties, that we seasoned well with salt and pepper, then seared in a hot cast iron pan.  Given the lighter taste, the additional sear added both texture and flavor.  Between the patties we added pimento cheese and topped the stack with bourbon bacon jam.  This all went into a soft, freshly-toasted brioche bun.  It was delicious. 

Burger Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground bison meat
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• Canola oil (for lightly oiling the pan)

Bourbon Bacon Jam Ingredients:

• 3 onions, sliced
• 1 pound of bacon, diced
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/3+ cup packed, light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup bourbon
• 3 Tbs apple cider vinegar
• 4 Tbs butter

Cheese of choice (I used pimento cheese)

Mayonnaise

Brioche buns

Directions for the bourbon bacon jam:

1. Over medium heat in a large Dutch oven pan, render the bacon.
2. When most of the fat is rendered, add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until translucent (watch that they don’t stick).
3. Add the butter, thyme, sugar, vinegar and bourbon and cook on low for about 1 1/2 hours until well caramelized and jam-like. Stir occasionally. Season with salt and pepper, as needed.
4. Store in the refrigerator.

Directions for burgers:

1. Heat a cast iron pan for about 5 minutes on medium.
2. Gently form thin patties (two for each burger) and season with salt and pepper.
3. Sear each patty for about 2 – 3 minutes per side.
4. Toast the brioche buns with a little butter.
5. Spread some mayonnaise on the top bun and then stack patty, cheese, patty, jam.

Enjoy!