Buffalo: The Other Red Meat

Tell the truth, ladies. If you were scanning a menu and saw “buffalo” as an entrée item, would it grab your interest or would you quickly scan to find something featuring boneless chicken breast? “I’ll have the buffalo,” just does not roll off our pretty painted lips.

Buffalo!?

It sounds like man food: big, burly he-man-in-a-lumberjack-
plaid-flannel-shirt food. Ladies do not eat something called buffalo, let alone anything that looks like a buffalo, all big and hairy.

Well, girlfriend, I’ve tasted buffalo (also referred to as bison) and it is sweet, flavorful, and tender—everything I never expected it to be and more. A little research revealed that it is nutritionally superior to beef, chicken, and pork on many levels.

My first purchase of buffalo came from Red Run Bison Farm located in Marshallville. I kept bumping into owner Steve Slifko at the farmers markets hosted by the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy this past summer. Lots of small talk, no cash changed hands.

Our meetings had finally reached a point where I had to buy something so I decided the safest selection would be the ground buffalo meat. That simple purchase resulted in the best batch of chili I’ve ever made or fed my boys. Same pot, same recipe, same seasonings, same everything. So I called Steve and we talked buffalo.

ML: Let’s clear up some confusion. Are we talking buffalo or bison?

SS: They are one and the same.

ML: What’s the biggest myth about the big hairy beast?

SS: That they are clumsy. They can run at 35 miles per hour and clear a six-foot fence. They are pretty agile.

ML: So how many buffalo roam your farm?

SS: Right now there are 260 on 300 acres. The rule of thumb is one animal per acre.

ML: That’s a lot of buffalo meat.

SS: We only process 50 a year.

ML: Does a buffalo yield the same cuts as a cow?

SS: Buffalo are members of the bovine family. They have four stomachs and split hooves. You get identical cuts. The most fabulous cuts are the tenderloin, which you can cut with a spoon, and we like the burger meat.

ML: How are the buffalo on Red Run Farm raised?

SS: On a complete grass diet—hay and grass pastures only. Everything they eat is raised right here on our farm.

ML: Do you have to cook it differently and what does that diet do to the flavor of the meat?

SS: Some cookbooks will say cook it at lower heats and for longer cooking times. We cook buffalo the same way we cook beef and always get good results, always tender no matter how we cook it. We always cook it so there’s a little pink in the middle. Buffalo has a rich flavor with some sweetness to it. It also has less fat, calories, and cholesterol than skinless chicken, beef, and pork. We can cook up eight buffalo patties in a skillet and not have any grease. You always feel satisfied after eating it, not stuffed, because of the lack of fat.

ML: It’s pricier than beef. Tell me why?

SS: Yeah. Ground buffalo is seven dollars a pound. It takes us two and a half to three years to raise a buffalo to market weight, twice as long as a cow and double the feed.
But the meat is denser and it satisfies more while eating less. You also get more protein, nutrients with fewer calories, and fat.

ML: Who do you have to sell more on the virtues and flavors of buffalo meat: girls or guys?

SS: Women who are health conscious are our best customers. They don’t have to be sold. Men? They’ll try anything. Some women think that buffalo is game meat and don’t want to try it at all, but once they do, they are sold.

Comments

[Chris]

Is buffalo meat only sold as ground meat? Or is there also buffalo steak, buffalo stew meat, etc.?

[Marilou Suszko]

ML: Does a buffalo yield the same cuts as a cow?

SS: Buffalo are members of the bovine family. They have four stomachs and split hooves. You get identical cuts. The most fabulous cuts are the tenderloin, which you can cut with a spoon, and we like the burger meat.

Yes! Every cut you enjoy or expect from a cow you'll find on a buffalo. Please let me know if you try it and what you think.