Where The Buffalo Roam

One of my all time favorite places in the world to visit is San Francisco. On one of my first trips there my mother and I made a delicious discovery, a little place called; "Tommy's Joynt". Our family that resides in California kept telling us that we had to go there for their buffalo stew and wash it down with a beer from any where in the world. The beer list is one of the most extensive ones that I had ever seen. I prefer dark beers and was overwhelmed by all the choices so I ended up trying a few. I tried a chocolate stout from England, a stout from Ireland and a rich robust dark from Germany. I wish I could have tried them all but then they would have had to reopen Alcatraz just to keep me off the streets. There were so many things on the food menu that we would have liked to try but since they were known for their buffalo stew and family and friends raved about it we knew we had to give it a try. I was a little skeptical, at that time I had never tried buffalo meat so I was worried that it might have a strong gamey flavor. When the bowl of stew arrived it was thick and rich in color and texture. The aroma was that of the beef stew we all grew up with and the taste was familiar and comforting. Trust me if you like beef you can enjoy buffalo meat with no problem at all the only thing that is different is fat and calories, the buffalo meat is much lower on both counts.

Buffalo Stew

3 lb. buffalo, cut up for stew
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c. oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/2 c. dry red wine
1/4 c. ketchup
1 c. mushrooms, sliced and sautéed
Kitchen Bouquet to taste

Lightly salt and pepper the meat. Heat a large Dutch oven and add the oil. In 2 different batches, brown meat on all sides. Add remaining ingredients and stir well. Cook slowly, covered, at low heat.

Photo/Ally37/Flickr