United State of America | Bison Steak with Maque Choux and Minnesota Wild Rice

CLICK HERE FOR THE MAQUE CHOUX RECIPE

The steak is actually medium-rare except for that one little "tail" piece which was well-done.

When I decided that the dishes I made for this project had to be something I’d never eaten or cooked before, I wasn’t thinking ahead to what I’d make for the United States. I’ve pretty much eaten or cooked all of the foods one would think of as American. 

What could I make that was uniquely American, that was also something new to me? 

American bison! Our local grocery store carries bison ribeye steaks so I decided to give it a shot.

As for sides, I did a little digging and found Maque Choux which is a corn, pepper(s), and onion dish that appears to have originated in Louisiana and been influenced by both French Creole and Native American people. 

For the other side, I went with Minnesota Wild Rice. According to the Minnesota Cultivated Wild Rice Council, wild rice is the only cereal grain native to North America. It is also the state grain of Minnesota. The Ojibwe people harvested it for sustenance as far back as the 1600s so it has been around awhile. I have had wild rice in the past but I’d never sought out rice specifically from Minnesota before. And I’d always had it in a dish, not as its own thing. I found a small bag of it at our local grocery store and followed the instructions on the bag. It needs to be cooked in liquid (it doesn’t specify what kind of liquid so I used chicken broth) for about an hour.

I cooked the bison steak in the air fryer. I cook all of my steaks in the air fryer, it is quick and easy, and they come out remarkably tender. It is how I prefer my steaks and I will die on this hill.

Anyway, how did everything turn out?

The Bison Steak: It was good! I was worried that bison would have a strong gamy flavor, look at a bison, it looks like it is gonna have a BOLD flavor. But I found it milder in flavor than beef. I seasoned it with freshly ground pepper and ground Himalayan salt; I didn’t want to over-season it and mask the flavor of the bison. I think it would taste good with just about any seasoning or marinade you would use with beef. I would eat bison again!

The Maque Choux: It was fine. The fresh corn at the store did not look healthy so I ended up using frozen corn which may have impacted the overall texture. It also could have used a little more seasoning, maybe something like Tony Chachere’s. It was not bad in any way; it just didn’t do much for me. I’d be just as happy with a can of Niblets.

The Minnesota Wild Rice:  It was okay. It had a slightly nutty flavor but I cooked it in chicken broth and I could taste that as well. I didn’t love the texture. If you’ve had long grain and wild rice blends, you know what the texture is like. Just imagine that without the white rice and just a mouthful of wild rice grains. I do not think I’ll make it again.

All in all, it was a good meal, the bison was my favorite part of it. I might try making burgers with bison in the future.