Bison Stew

It's still winter! And a hearty pot of stew is just what we need.

Most stews are made with fresh lean meat, carrots, celery, onions and garlic, maybe potatoes, mushrooms and sweet bell peppers. Some may add mushrooms, turnips or parsnips. Seasonings are personal. Use a heavy bottomed dutch oven with a lid. You don't want to scorch your creation, and covering while it simmers will keep the juices from evaporating away.















For this lovely version, here is what I prepared:

• 2 pounds of lean, tender bison steak or roast - seasoned with essence and cubed
• 1 large onion - diced coarsely
• 1 teaspoon fresh or dried garlic slices
  
• 4-5 medium carrots - course chop
• 3-4 celery stalks - diced
  
• 1 1/2 cups button mushrooms - sliced
• 12 baby potatoes, skin on - cut in half
• 1 yellow and one red bell pepper - diced coarsely
• 1 can niblets corn

Seasoning:

• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 low sodium vegetable bouillon cube in 1 cup water - no MSG
• 1 tablespoon gravy browner - no MSG version
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• some chili flakes to taste - optional
• 1 teaspoon marjoram
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 tablespoon parsley flakes
• 1 bay leaf - optional

Brown the meat in a little grape-seed oil in hot cast iron pan. Remove to dutch oven or stew pot. Cook onion, carrots, mushrooms and bell peppers in hot pan to bring out the sweetness and flavors. Add to meat in dutch oven. Add potatoes and corn with juice to pot. Season with pepper, bouillon, gravy browner, soy sauce and chili flakes. Add marjoram, thyme and parsley flakes. A bay leaf can be also added, but should be removed before serving.

To thicken add 1/3 cup flour to 1 cup cold water and stir with fork to remove lumps. Strain if necessary. Add to hot stew and simmer 20 minutes. If stew gets too thick, add a bit of water or other liquid until desired consistency. Taste before serving to see if seasoning is to your liking and adjust if needed.

Serve with fresh buns.