By Sean Sherman
- Total Time
- 3½ to 4 hours, plus overnight soaking
- Rating
- 4(91)
- Notes
- Read community notes
The American bison that once roamed the Great Plains were considered sacred animals by the Lakota and other people of the region, and served as a critical food source that was celebrated in ceremonies and honored in prayers. According to numbers published by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, there were 30 million to 60 million bison in North America in the 1500s. By the end of the 1800s, settlers had decimated the population. In the late 1990s, the number of bison in North America had grown again, to nearly 300,000 animals in public herds and on ranches. It’s exciting we now have access to this vitally important meat. When it’s slowly braised, the lean, mild bison becomes fork tender; hominy brings substance and a subtly sweet, nutty corn flavor. Serve this dish alone or pair it with roasted turnips and winter squash. Soaking the hominy overnight before adding it to the pot helps it cook faster, so the dried corn kernels are ready in the same amount of time as the bison. Leftovers are terrific served over corn cakes or folded into tortillas. A small branch of foraged white cedar adds a woodsy note, but juniper berries achieve a similar effect.
Featured in: Sean Sherman’s 10 Essential Native American Recipes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 to 8 servings
- 1cup dried hominy (see Note)
- 1(3- to 4-pound) bison chuck roast
- Coarse sea salt
- 3tablespoons sunflower oil
- 3 to 4cups bison or vegetable stock
- 2fresh sage sprigs, plus more sage leaves reserved for garnish
- 1(4-inch) branch wild white cedar, or 2 teaspoons dried juniper berries
- ¼cup light agave nectar
- 1packed cup sliced dandelion greens (or other dark greens, such as spinach or kale)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
349 calories; 16 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 40 grams protein; 799 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Add the hominy to a large bowl and cover with 3 inches of water. Let soak overnight at room temperature. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Step
2
Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Season the bison generously on all sides with 2 tablespoons salt. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high. Add the bison and sear it until browned on all sides, rotating the meat when it releases easily from the pot, about 15 minutes total. Transfer the meat to a plate, then add the drained hominy, stock, sage sprigs, cedar or juniper, and agave to the pot.
Step
3
Bring to a simmer over high heat, scraping the bottom of the pot. Return the meat to the pot, cover, transfer to the oven and bake until the meat is very tender, 3 to 3½ hours, turning over the bison about halfway through. Remove and discard the sage sprigs and cedar, if using. (If using juniper berries, you can discard them, but it’s not necessary: They add surprising flavor and texture when eaten with the meat.) Stir in the greens until wilted. Season the liquid with more salt to taste.
Step
4
Slice the meat into 1-inch-thick slabs and divide among shallow bowls. Spoon some of the sauce, hominy and greens over the slices, and garnish with whole or torn sage leaves.
- Dried, soaked hominy is crucial for this dish, as it lends more substance and body to the sauce than canned varieties would. Traditional Native American recipes use dried heirloom Pima corn, which is smaller and more flavorful than most commercial hominy. You can order it online from Ramona Farms or Native Seeds Search, or substitute dried commercial hominy, if need be.
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Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Lynn
I assume "sage" refers to common European culinary sage. Is there an indigenous equivalent? I remember a bewildering variety of sagebrushes with a bewildering variety of uses. At least some of the leaves were reminiscent of the flavor of culinary sage, although the ones I was familiar with had pronounced medicinal effects--enough that I wouldn't just toss in a random handful.
Crystal
Decided to prepare this dish for Thanksgiving guests, having never made bison before. I ordered bison English roasts from Wild Idea Buffalo Company since bison chuck roast was nowhere to be found locally. For time's sake, I ordered dried white hominy, too, as none of the regular markets have it, but probably could have found it at a Latin American grocery store. Delicious! I used a very good vegetable stock, juniper berries and dried sage, and couldn't have been more pleased with the result.
Tammi
This is clearly explained:"Traditional Native American recipes use dried heirloom Pima corn, which is smaller and more flavorful than most commercial hominy."If I were you, I would hesitate to correct someone who is trying to preserve their native culinary traditions, which predate yours (often significantly), by telling them their food isn't the "true" version.
Roberta
I bought a bison chuck roast several days before this recipe was posted in the Times food section. Luckily I had also just made bison stock. I live in New Mexico where we eat lots of posole (most often cooked with red chile), so this seemed like the perfect recipe. It did not disappoint. The meat was fork tender and the posole was still a bit al dente. My house smelled wonderful. The juniper berries added an interesting note. A welcome change from the classic pot roast recipe. A keeper!
KYS
How many grams of hominy or Pima corn is 1 cup? I’m wanting to make sure I order a large enough bag online. Thanks!
Diana
The flavor is amazing!! My only issue is that my hominy wasn’t fully cooked, even after four hours of braising so I’d suggest precooking or maybe using canned.
lissakate
This turned out amazingly well! I browned the beef and then threw it in to the crockpot for 8 hours. Served with roasted butternut squash and butter tortillas.
lida a.
Unfortunately I couldn’t find heirloom hominy (sold out online)I used goya brand as it was the only one I could findDespite being in water for 15h, the kernels remained firm and ended up absorbing all the stock while cooking. This resulted in a non fluid mass…The meat is very tasty but I needed to improvise the next day with more stock and warming up to add the spinach. Far from ideal
StephaJ
Do you think I could make this recipe with a 4.5lb bison rib roast instead of chuck roast? That is what my butcher can get this week and I was hoping to do this for Christmas Eve dinner.
Brigitte Como
Very nice recipe! I would try it next time with beef, as bison was very expensive
Janelle
How can I recreate this with top sirloin?
Crystal
Decided to prepare this dish for Thanksgiving guests, having never made bison before. I ordered bison English roasts from Wild Idea Buffalo Company since bison chuck roast was nowhere to be found locally. For time's sake, I ordered dried white hominy, too, as none of the regular markets have it, but probably could have found it at a Latin American grocery store. Delicious! I used a very good vegetable stock, juniper berries and dried sage, and couldn't have been more pleased with the result.
Lori B
The picture doesn’t look like true hominy, more like dried corn. Hominy is white and larger. So if you can’t find dried or frozen hominy you could substitute. And it may be labeled as “Posole.”
Tammi
This is clearly explained:"Traditional Native American recipes use dried heirloom Pima corn, which is smaller and more flavorful than most commercial hominy."If I were you, I would hesitate to correct someone who is trying to preserve their native culinary traditions, which predate yours (often significantly), by telling them their food isn't the "true" version.
ben
Could this be served with an equally lean game meat, like venison?
Paul Baerman
My local Whole Foods meatmonger looked at me blankly when I mentioned a bison chuck roast. Maybe it’s something you can get only in New York? We’re trying it with regular cow.
MS
It should be in the prepacked meat section near the beef. Sometimes they have it in the butcher section.
Alyssa
Depending on where you are, you might be able to get it at a local or regional farmer's market
Roberta
I bought a bison chuck roast several days before this recipe was posted in the Times food section. Luckily I had also just made bison stock. I live in New Mexico where we eat lots of posole (most often cooked with red chile), so this seemed like the perfect recipe. It did not disappoint. The meat was fork tender and the posole was still a bit al dente. My house smelled wonderful. The juniper berries added an interesting note. A welcome change from the classic pot roast recipe. A keeper!
High in CO
I’ve used frozen hominy for posole— it’s a huge improvement over canned (yech). I might give frozen a try here.
Lynn
I assume "sage" refers to common European culinary sage. Is there an indigenous equivalent? I remember a bewildering variety of sagebrushes with a bewildering variety of uses. At least some of the leaves were reminiscent of the flavor of culinary sage, although the ones I was familiar with had pronounced medicinal effects--enough that I wouldn't just toss in a random handful.
Perignon
Thank you for this, Mr. Sherman!I've cooked bison a couple of different ways, but this recipe using Pima is definitely now in my sights. I had to order the Pima online, but the fresh bison is available at a local market so I'll be trying this by the weekend.
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