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Bison Burger

With only 4 ingredients in the patties, these Bison Burgers are easy to put together on a weeknight. Add your favorite hamburger bun and toppings for a healthier version of one of America’s favorite foods.

With bison showing up more and more on restaurant menus, I thought I’d see what this exotic-sounding red meat was all about. And I’m glad I did.

Video: Tips For The Best Burgers

Facts About Bison

Here are a couple of things that I learned:

  1. Bison is a very lean protein typically containing approximately 50% less fat by weight than beef. This makes it a great lean protein choice.
  2. Bison and Buffalo are two different things. Bison are native to North American and Buffalo hail from Asia and Africa. The Modern Farmer has a great article that clears up any confusion.
  3. Bison doesn’t have a gamey flavor – at all.

Burgers seemed the likely choice to start my bison experimentation with. I discovered that many of the concepts from my Best Burger recipe applied to the Bison Burgers.

How To Make Great Bison Burgers

Keep the Seasonings Simple

Bison has an almost sweet flavor to it and as I mentioned above, there is no gamey or wild flavor at all. It’s actually quite subtle. With this in mind, I opted for salt, pepper, and thyme.

This simplicity also applies to the toppings. I found the simpler, the better.  I did have a friend tell me that they fry an egg to the over-easy state and added it to the burger with quite delicious effects. That kinda defeats the lean protein aspect. But…

Handle with Care

Bison is less forgiving than beef when it comes to over-mixing. When you are mixing the seasonings in, don’t overdo it. Too much mixing will make it tough. Less is more in this case. When you’re forming the patties, press them together gently and create an indent in the center. This will help to eliminate that center bulge as the proteins shrink during cooking.

Don’t Over Cook, Please!

Because bison is such a lean protein, it really should be cooked to medium-rare (140˚F ) and no more. It will become dry and flavorless, in my opinion. So please, use an instant read thermometer and don’t overcook your bison burgers.

I like to fry my bison burgers in a skillet with some butter. The butter adds a wonderful flavor and helps to create a crisp, brown crust on the burger. Make sure that your heat isn’t too high (medium-high is good) as the meat has a tendency to cook very quickly.

If you want to cook them on the grill, heat it to medium-high. Make sure that you keep an eye on the burgers. They will cook in 4 – 5 minutes per side to the medium-rare doneness.

You’re now armed with enough knowledge to go forth and make your own bison burgers.

More Tasty Burger Recipes

Enjoy! – Christine xo

Print

Bison Burger Recipe

  • Author: Christine Pittman
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 8 minutes
  • Total Time: 18 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Category: Entrée
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: American

DESCRIPTION

With only 4 ingredients in the patties, these Bison Burgers are easy to put together on a weeknight.
Grilling instructions in post above.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 lb. ground bison
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper
  • 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
  • 2 Tbsp. butter
  • 4 hamburger buns, toasted
  • Your favorite burger toppings

Instructions

  1. In a large mixing bowl, gently mix bison meat, salt, pepper, and dried thyme.
  2. Divide bison mixture into 4 equal portions. Using your hands, gently flatten shape into a disc with an indentation in the center and about 4-inches in diameter.
  3. Heat a medium-sized skillet, over medium-hight heat. Add the butter and swirl the pan to coat the bottom.
  4. Add the patties immediately cooking to your desired doneness. Because bison is such a lean protein, I like to cook it to a medium-rare doneness (140˚F internal temperature on an instant read thermometer) other wise I feel like it becomes quite dry.
  5. Serve the patties on toasted buns with your favorite burger toppings.

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