Buffalo Bill’s Favorite Bison Tenderloin with Horseradish Brandy Sauce
Buffalo Bill Cody was famous for being a great shot, but did you know he was a foodie, as well? His favorite meat was North American Bison. He became a legend when one day, he came across some Union soldiers near a herd of Buffalo. Buffalo Bill got off twelve shots, and when he was done, eleven Bison had fallen.
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We are cooking Bison over an open flame, just like Buffalo Bill preferred in this video. The printable recipe below includes instructions for cooking at home in a conventional oven. The tenderloin is baked and then sliced and seared. The flavor of the meat is perfectly complimented with a special sauce.
Prepare the Horseradish Brandy Sauce
The perfect sauce to go with Bison is this simple Horseradish Brandy sauce. In a small bowl, mix a little Brandy, horseradish, Worchestershire Sauce, garlic, heavy cream, and coarse ground pepper. Set aside in the ice box for later.
How to Prepare a Bison Tenderloin For Cooking
Bison is a lean, red meat. Dry the meat and cut off any silver skin. Trim any extra fat off of the edges. Allow the meat to warm up to room temperature if it was stored in the ice box.
Tip: Bison cooks faster than Beef, due to its lack of intramuscular fat.
How to Season Bison
Bison is a very lean meat, so start by rubbing some melted butter all over the meat. This will add flavor and help adhere the seasoning to the meat. For seasoning, use Original Seasoning, or your favorite all-purpose BBQ seasoning. We recommend our Original Seasoning because it has just a little citrus that brings out the flavor in the meat instead of overpowering.
Those of you that have been watching us for years might be wondering why I’m not using lime juice. Good question! This cut is already tender enough! What it needs is a little more fat for flavor.
Finish off the seasoning by adding some coarse ground black pepper. This is going to add a great texture to the crust. From here, you can roast the Bison in a Dutch oven, searing the crust at the end, or you can slice it into steaks and cook in a cast iron skillet. Both methods are included below.
Option 1: Sear the Bison Tenderloin Whole
Start by Roasting the Bison in a Dutch Oven
I’m using a 12″ Dutch oven. Pour the beef broth and melted butter in the bottom until it comes just up to the side of the tenderloin. We’re not boiling the meat in the liquid, we want that liquid to steam and keep the meat moist and tender during cooking.
Cover and cook until the internal temperature of the bison is 110 degrees. This should take about 30 minutes.
Have your grill or cast iron skillet pre-heated and oiled well. Sear the bison tenderloin for 2-3 minutes per side, until the internal temperature reaches 125 degrees. Remove from heat and let rest for a few minutes.
Slice, drizzle with the Brandy Horseradish sauce, and serve.
Option 2: Slice the Bison Tenderloin into Steaks before Cooking
Once the meat has been seasoned and rested for a few minutes, slice into 1 1/2″ steaks. Get a cast iron skillet good and hot (medium-high). Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook for 2 minutes or so per side. Sear all along the sides as well, until there’s a good crust formed all over each steak.
When the steaks reach an internal temperature of 125 degrees, remove from the skillet to rest. Pour half of the brandy horseradish sauce into the skillet to deglaze the pan. Add the pan sauce back to the remaining sauce, mixing well. Drizzle the Bison steaks with the sauce, and serve.
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Buffalo Bill's Bison Tenderloin with Horseradish Brandy Sauce - Cowboy Kent Rollins
Ingredients
Horseradish Brandy Sauce
- 2 tablespoons creamy horseradish or to taste
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Brandy
- ½ tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
Bison Tenderloin
- 2 to 3 lb Bison Tenderloin
- 6 tablespoons melted butter divided
- 3 tablespoons Kent’s Original seasoning or your favorite all purpose rub
- 1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
- 2 cups beef broth
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together all the sauce ingredients. Cover and place in the refrigerator, until ready to use.
- Pour 3 tablespoons of melted butter over the tenderloin and rub it in on all sides. Generously season with the Original seasoning, or your preference. Finish with a light coating of the coarse pepper. Let rest about 30 minutes on the counter, to warm slightly.
- In a deep Dutch Oven, or foil pan, add the remaining 3 tablespoons butter and beef broth. Lay the tenderloin in the pan. The broth should just reach slightly up the tenderloin. Add more broth, if needed.
- Cover and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the tenderloin reaches 110 degrees F. *Note: this method can also be done outside in a Dutch oven, please see video for instructions.
- Remove the tenderloin from the pan and place on a hot grill for about 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches about 125 degrees F. Remove and let rest for a few minutes.
- Cut into about 1 ½ -inch steaks, drizzle with the leftover juices from cooking and Horseradish sauce. Serve.
Alternately, you can use the steak searing method:
- After letting the tenderloin rest after seasoning, cut out about 1 ½-inch steaks from the loin.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium- high heat.
- Add the steaks to the skillet and cook for about 2 minutes per side, then roll around the edges until the steaks get a good sear and reaches about 125 degrees F. Remove and let rest.
- Meanwhile, return to the hot skillet and add the Horseradish sauce, stir to deglaze and mix well. Serve with the steaks.