BISON POT ROAST AND POPOVERS TO CELEBRATE FALL

Posted in Beef, Side dishes by sallybr

This is comfort food taken to the highest level, a perfect meal for those evenings that bring a little chill, and the realization that Summer is indeed over. I could cry, but dancing to the music is much, much better. We get our bison from a farm near our town. You can check their site here. if you don’t have access to bison meat, use regular beef.

BISON POT ROAST
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

1 bison roast (about 4 pounds, boneless)
1 large onion, peeled, cut in half
3 celery sticks, sliced thin
Carrots, many carrots, cut in large pieces
Small potatoes, amount to taste
4 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine
2 cups or more beef stock
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter

Pat the meat very dry with paper. Season liberally with salt and pepper. To a large oven-proof pot, add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Heat until almost smoking. Brown the meat on all sides. Remove from the pot, add the remaining olive oil and sautee the celery, carrots until fragrant.

Add the potatoes, place the meat back in the pot, add the red wine, beef stock, onion and bay leaves. Make sure the liquid comes almost all the way to the top of the meat. Place in a 350F oven and cook for 4 hours or until the meat is tender. Flip the meat every hour or so. If necessary, add more beef stock or water.

When the meat is tender, remove it from the pot and tent with foil. Discard the onion and bay leaves. Drain the liquid into a bowl, reservig the carrots, celery and potatoes. Add butter to the empty pot where you cooked the meat, melt it over medium-heat. Add the flour, cook stirring for a couple of minutes to make a roux. Add the reserved liquid back into the pot and cook to thicken it, simmering for a few minutes. Put the meat back on the pot, together with the veggies, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, if needed.

You can serve right away or keept it at a very low simmer while you make popovers to go with it.

POPOVERS
(adapted from several sources)

200g bread flour
¾ teaspoon table salt
1 + ½ cups full-fat milk, slightlly warmed
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
dash of nutmeg

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly spray cups of popover pan with vegetable oil spray.

Place the warm milk in a blender. Add the flour, eggs, salt and nutmeg. Process at low-speed first, then increase speed to high and blend for minute. Add the melted butter and blend for a few seconds more.

Distribute batter evenly among prepared cups in popover pan. You will have enough for six large popovers. Bake until popovers are lofty and deep golden brown all over, 40 to 45 minutes. If browning too much, cover the top with foil in the final minutes of baking.

ENJOY!

to print the recipes, click here

Comments: Super important to brown the meat well, so take your time with that step. Cooking time will vary according to the type of meat you use. If you are making the pot roast to serve for dinner on the same day, I advise you to start early, maybe around 1pm maximum, so you don’t have to rush and the meat will be tender and delicious.

This is a hearty meal, but so worth the extra calories and carbs. Exercise restraint for a couple of days following this feast, and all will be fine with the universe. Except all the things that are bad in the world, but not many of thoese we can control. Do your best to preserve you mental sanity. And carpe diem.

It is really hard to take a good picture of brown food, but I hope you take my word for it, this was a delicious meal, perfect for Fall or Winter. We had plenty of leftovers and even some four-legged creatures profited from them.

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16May2026

SALAD AND STEAK

Posted in Beef, Salads by sallybr

Vegetarians, you would be very satisfied without the steak because it is quite a hearty salad, so if you pair it with a slice of sourdough bread, you will be a happy camper. But, if you happen to be in my team, that team that loves a juicy steak cooked medium rare, go ahead and put them to work together…

HEARTY CHOPPED SALAD WITH STEAK
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

6 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 romaine heart, quartered lengthwise and sliced crosswise into ½-inch pieces
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed
1 medium English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and diced
1/2 cup pitted mixed black and green olives
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon drained capers, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
drizzle of honey
dried dill to taste
1 firm-ripe avocado, halved, pitted and diced
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
T-bone steak or sirloin, cooked to your liking for serving

Salt the slices of cucumber and allow them, to sit for 15 minutes. Rinse, and pat dry.

Place the romaine pieces in a large mixing bowl, along with the chickpeas, cucumber, and olives.

In a small bowl, whisk together 6 tablespoons olive oil with the vinegar, capers, mustard, salt, pepper and dill to taste. Mix, and add a drizzle of honey.

Pour half the dressing over the salad, mix well. Add the avocado, and feta, toss gently, adding more dressing to taste. Top with steak slices, and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This was a perfect meal on a weeknight, with salad leftovers for next day. The avocado was a little beaten but still ok, all other components did not suffer at all from the night spent in the fridge. You can use goat cheese for even sharper bite, and maybe add cherry tomatoes, for a burst of color, although I must say I like the way it was all almost monochromatic, just the steak adding contrast. If you have a dinner party coming up, consider serving this salad, it will be a crowd-pleaser!

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29Apr2026

KOREAN-STYLE GROUND BEEF

Posted in Beef by sallybr

Yet another recipe that exemplifies my favorite type of lunch: high in protein, low in carbs and with bold flavor. Of course, it is best enjoyed over rice, to make it even more satisfying. Make it cauliflower rice if you want to lighten it up.

KOREAN-STYLE GROUND BEEF
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

1 lb (450g) ground beef (I used ground bison)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon grape seed oil
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
¼ cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon spicy chili crisp (or more to taste)
green onions, thinly sliced, and sesame seeds for garnish

Mix soy sauce, cornstarch, brown sugar, and chili flakes in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat sesame oil and grape seed oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add ginger, sauté for 30 seconds, then add the ground beef. Cook for 5-7 minutes, breaking it into crumbles.

Pour the sauce over the meat, stir well, and simmer for a few minutes until thickened.

Stir in chopped green onions, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and serve hot over rice, cauliflower rice, or in lettuce wraps.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: You can make this recipe with ground turkey if you prefer, in fact I made that the following week and intend to repeat, alternating beef and turkey for fun. It is indeed one of my favorite types of lunch. I know that Koren food has nothing to do with Mexico, but I admit that I used this filling on corn tortillas and my crime has to be forgiven by the universe because I enjoyed it. Immensely. But on a more traditional route, here it is, over rice, with some pickled red onions (store-bought) and fresh tomatoes. Pure heaven.

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9Jul2023

EGYPTIAN GOULASH

Posted in Beef by sallybr

I am as puzzled as you might be, because the recipe does not seem like Goulash to me, and I cannot even be sure it is truly from Egypt. But if you rather call it Phyllo Meat Pie, go right ahead. It is not going to sound nearly as sexy, though…

EGYPTIAN GOULASH
(adapted from several sources)

16 ounce package of frozen phyllo dough
1/2 egg, whisked in 1/2 cup of milk
salt and pepper
olive oil spray

For the filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, minced
3/4 pound ground turkey
3/4 pound ground bison
1 + ½ teaspoons baharat
1 cup red bell pepper, roasted (I used store-bought, 12 oz jar)
1/3 cup tomato passata
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick pan. Saute the shallots. Add the two kinds of ground meat. Cook until fully browned, tossing regularly. Add the red bell pepper cut in small pieces. Saute a couple of minutes, add the tomato passata and the baharat. Season with salt and pepper. Heat everything together and remove to a bow to cool slightly before using. You can also do this step a day in advance.

Now, to assemble the phyllo pie, lay five sheets of phyllo dough on the bottom of a lightly greased 9 ½ x 13 x 2 ¼ inch baking pan. Spray a little olive oil between each sheet of phyllo as you lay them on the baking dish. Spray the top phyllo sheet generously with olive oil (or oil and butter mixture). Add the cooled meat mixture. Top with five or six more sheets of phyllo, always spraying with olive oil in between sheets. Tuck the edges in, spray a good amount of olive oil on top, and use a super sharp knife (ceramic is great) to cut the pie in squares, all the way to the bottom.

Whisk the egg and milk mixture well, season lightly with salt and pepper and pour it all over the pie, shaking the baking dish a bit to make sure the liquid is well dispersed.

Bake for about 40 minutes, until the phyllo is crispy and golden brown. Remove from the oven, let it rest for about 10 minutes and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the mixture of ground turkey and bison because the turkey helps with moisture and texture for the ground bison, which can be a bit dry. If bison is hard for you to find, use ground beef instead, and you can even skip the ground turkey and go for 1.5 pounds of ground beef. I would then drain the excess fat after sautéing the meat just to make the whole dish lighter. Baharat is such a great spice mix, the delicate cinnamon flavor goes super well with this savory preparation.

This will definitely be in our rotation, and it is a nice option for a dinner party too. All you need is a little salad to go with it.

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26Nov2022

BISON A LA MODE DE BOURGOGNE

Posted in Beef by sallybr

Living in Kansas we have access to excellent bison meat, in fact not too long ago the husband went to a farm near our town and brought home several packages of bison meat, some for stew, some ground. This is my adaptation of a French classic, some components will be missing to accommodate our food sensitivities. As usual, brown food is so tricky to get nice pictures, so trust me when I say this is delicious, perfect comfort food for the weather we are experiencing.

BISON A LA MODE DE BOURGOGNE
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

5 strips of thick bacon, cut in large pieces
several tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds bison stew meat, cut in pieces
salt and pepper to taste
4 large carrots, peeled, cut in 1/4 inch slices
2 shallots, diced
1 can diced tomatoes, drained (14.5 oz)
1 bouquet garni, made with parsley, thyme and bay leaves
1 bottle red wine
2 cups cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 tablespoon butter
fresh parsley, minced

Sauce the bacon without any added fat, until golden brown and starting to get crispy. Remove pieces to a paper towel to drain excess fat. Take one tablespoon of bacon fat, add to a Dutch oven and add a little more olive oil. Season the bison meat with salt and pepper, and sautée in batches until it starts to get brown. Remove to a bowl, and add the bacon pieces to the bowl.

If needed, add more oil to the pan and sauté the carrots and shallots for 5 minutes or so. Add the tomatoes, the wine, and the bouquet garni. Deglaze the pan with a wooden spoon, then place the meat and bacon back. Season with a little more salt, cover the pan, and place in a 325 F oven for 3 hours. Check after 2 hours to make sure it is not getting too dry. If there is very little liquid, add water. Meat should be super tender at the end of cooking.

About 10 minutes before serving, saute the mushrooms in butter, seasoning with salt and pepper. Add the mushrooms to the bison stew, add fresh parsley and serve. Adjust seasoning if needed.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Bison is a fantastic type of meat, very flavorful but not excessively fatty. A little bit of bacon, is not only traditional, but needed when using such a lean meat, it does pump up the flavor. The amount of liquid might seem excessive (full bottle of wine!) but in fact I had to add quite a bit more water after 2 hours. If you are in our team, that is – heading to real cold weather – consider making a big batch. Comfort food at its best!