Whilst shopping at the Dupont Circle Farmer's Market for the last time before I move back to NY, I wanted to pick up some ingredients that I have never worked with. So I grabbed some zucchini blossoms, golden beets, and buffalo meet. Not knowing what to do with any of these ingredients, I figured it was time to do some research.
I was most perplexed by the buffalo meat. How long do I cook it? What is the texture like? Does it taste better with a marinade, or just tossed with some salt and pepper. These are the questions that I failed to ask the purveyor.
So I put my thinking cap on, thinking cap being Google. It seemed that buffalo meat could be served in a variety of marinades and sauces, so I threw a little sauce together and hoped for the best. The sauce was fantastic, but the meat, sadly, was very, VERY chewy. It was good, but I was slightly disappointed and chalked it up to needing to cook it at a lower heat, since buffalo has less fat than standard beef.
Oddly enough, the next day, the meat was so tender and light, I could have thought I was eating a piece of filet mignon. I was thoroughly perplexed (word of the day. How can you use perplexed in a sentence, kids?) and would love someone to shed some light on the wonders of this magic meat.
Buffalo Tenderloin Recipe
Serves 4
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon worchestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 tablespoons dijon mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp horseradish
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 lb buffalo tenderloin
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Mix first ten ingredients in a large bowl. Set aside.
Season buffalo with salt and pepper. Place buffalo in a 1 gallon ziplock bag and cover with marinade. Place in refrigerator for 2 hours, turning bag occassionally.
Heat grill. Grill buffalo for 3-4 minutes on both sides for medium rare. Let rest for ten minutes, then slice and serve.
I have never had buffalo. Looks like you did a great job. I'd be perplexed if tried cooking with such meat. I tend to tick with the usual suspects
Posted by: jenn | August 07, 2009 at 03:22 AM
Was the cooked leftover buffalo meat more tender the next day? We cook buffalo all the time and it does take a little while to get used to. Lower heat and less cooking time usually works, and we find it quite tender. BUT, I found that the quality of buffalo meat depends on which farm it comes from (how it's raised,what it's fed, etc.). We used to get buffalo from a local Virginia farm and it was the best ever, but then they went out of business. We then tried a different farm, and really didn't like their buffalo meat at all (it was not as tender and it had an after taste). We now get it at Wegmans - the ground meat is always good and the sirloin is ok most of the time (occasionally we would get a steak that's a bit too chewy or fatty, but that's the way it goes with sirloin, I suppose). Unfortunately, Wegmans cannot get fillets. Hope this info helps a bit.
Posted by: Natasha - 5 Star Foodie | August 07, 2009 at 07:38 AM
Goodbye Dupont circle, hello Union Square greenmarket! I've only ever had buffalo in a burger. It tasted just like beef but was supposed to be much leaner which probably explains the chewiness. But your marinade sounds really tasty!
Posted by: Phyllis (me HUNGRY!) | August 07, 2009 at 09:02 AM
What will you do with the beets and blossoms? :) Hope we get to hear about it!
Posted by: Drea | August 07, 2009 at 09:58 AM
what perplexes me, teanna, is that a seemingly adventurous gal like you hadn’t tried buffalo before! now that you have, I might suggest shredding it up, applying some sort of sweet and smoky sauce, and feasting on buffalo barbecue. it’s great in chili too.
Posted by: grace | August 07, 2009 at 11:16 AM
The sauce sounds great. I prefer using ground Bison for the lean factor, but haven't tried the tenderloin. Very interesting that it changed texture the next day. Perplexing, indeed, ha. Good luck with the move!
Posted by: Nicole | August 07, 2009 at 03:59 PM
The marinade sounds good. Too bad it required too much jaw action the first time. Curious to see how it works next time you try.
Posted by: The Duo Dishes | August 07, 2009 at 05:44 PM
At least it softened up on the second day! It looks really nice and juicy. I've never tried buffalo before.. I don't think I've seen it sold actually. It does look really interesting!
Posted by: Steph | August 07, 2009 at 08:15 PM
Google is my thinking cap too! I have never had Buffalo tenderloin, but this looks fab!
Posted by: Jamie | August 07, 2009 at 11:11 PM
Buffalo is fantastic! I love is slightly gamier flavor and lower fat content. Your marinade sounds great also.
Posted by: cheffresco | August 08, 2009 at 11:48 AM
Mmmmm. This looks wonderful. I can't think if I've had buffalo, but I've eaten quite a lot of bison. I love a good bison burger!
Posted by: Hilary | August 08, 2009 at 12:11 PM
yeah, i just picked up some ground buffalo meat from Dupont market last weekend, but haven't made it yet. I figured I would start with something easy like a burger for my first time cooking with it.
Posted by: Sara | August 09, 2009 at 11:16 PM
oh wow the meat is grilled to perfection. I've never tasted buffalo but this sure looks delicious. Nice bright flavors with horseradish!
Posted by: Jackie at PhamFatale.com | August 10, 2009 at 03:24 PM
Yum! We've never grilled our own buffalo. And thanks for the blanc manger link - it does look really delicious! I'd say it's definitely worth a try!
Posted by: cheffresco | August 10, 2009 at 06:25 PM
That looks delish! Will have to try it!
Posted by: Raffaela | August 11, 2009 at 11:35 AM
I am jealous you have access to zucchini blossoms AND buffalo...
It's nice it turned out well later.
Posted by: Sara | August 13, 2009 at 10:21 AM
It's so nice to have you do all of the research for us. It makes our decision making so much easier!! Thanks.
Posted by: MBT Shoes | July 22, 2011 at 04:30 AM