Turmeric Bison & Collards

I’ve mentioned a few times the incorporation of bison meat into my diet since moving away from a plant-based approach last May. Besides doing the research (see my recommended reading list here) and feeling convinced that adding meat back into my diet was positive for my health overall, I’ve made it a priority to find sources that are grass-fed and from farmers I can trust.

My favorite vendor so far has been Full Circle Bison Ranch in Oregon. <—I have no affiliation with the company, it’s just one that I wanted to share with you.

Each animal is 100% grass-fed on organic pastures and no-spray hay, and, according to the latest e-mail newsletter from the owner, “Once a week throughout the summer a mobile Abattoir comes to the ranch and harvests 2-4 animals from our herd of grazing Bison. We have used the same Abattoir since we started the ranch in 2001, simply because they are ethical, professional, and accurate. I have personally accompanied almost every harvest over the last 14 years, to make a traditional tobacco prayer offering, and to ensure every bison we harvest is killed quickly and humanely.”

I know not all my readers are meat-eaters and I assure you that it was quite a change for me to consume animal products after 3 1/2 years of following a strict vegan lifestyle, but doing the research to support these types of farmers is part of my new lifestyle. I do not profess perfection in that regard and I certainly don’t claim to know the right way to feed everyone in a sustainable fashion, but I am doing my best for my family and me.

That said, I’m sharing my first meat recipe with you since I’ve started following a more paleo-type approach. This one uses ground bison and a giant bunch of collard greens, with extra spices including the anti-inflammatory ground turmeric:

I heard someone say that you aren’t “eating paleo” if you aren’t eating as many vegetables as a vegetarian, so that’s kind of my standard:

You can see that I cut the leaves into long strips, a.k.a. chiffonades. I start the dish by heating up just about a teaspoon of olive oil in a large skillet and then sautéing the greens for a few minutes:

I used a large serving spoon to put the greens in a bowl and then cooked the meat along with the spices (if you wanted to make this dish vegan, you could substitute two packages of cooked, crumbled tempeh instead of the meat):

I like using dried turmeric and marjoram so much that I buy them in bulk from Vitacost.com (I decided not to be an affiliate of the company, but I do have a Refer-a-Friend $10 coupon for new customers using this link!) and keep them in their own containers:

More spices of choice, this time from my other favorite retailer (no affiliation), 🙂 :

The last step in this easy dish is to add the collard greens back into the skillet and stir everything together:

Here’s the recipe:

Turmeric Bison & Collards

• Author: Carrie Forrest, MBA/MPH
• Yield: 6
• Category: Main Dish
• Cuisine: Paleo

Ingredients

• 1 large bunch of collard greens, about 10-12 leaves
• 1-2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 lbs. ground bison
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon no-salt seasoning
• salt and ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Rinse each collard leaf and dry gently with a clean kitchen towel. Pull the leaves off the stems and discard the stems. Place the leaves on top of each other, roll them up, and slice into long strips. It is easier if you do this using 3-4 leaves at a time. Place the collard strips in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Heat up 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the collard strips and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Remove the collard leaves to a medium bowl and set aside while you cook the meat.
3. Add the ground bison to the skillet. Cook over medium heat for 6-8 minutes, or until the meat is cooked through. Use a spatula to break the meat up. Stir in the spices, turn off the heat, and stir in the collard greens.
4. Serve hot, with an extra dash of salt, if desired.

You can certainly eat the dish as is, or serve it with other side dishes like rice and avocado as seen in the picture at the beginning of this post or with a baked sweet potato and a pat of grass-fed butter as seen here:

If you prep the greens ahead of time, this meal comes together in less than 20 minutes and it makes great leftovers, too!

My goal is to provide inspiration for healthy, balanced living. You can find more links on my Recipes and Resources pages.

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