native american bison meatloaf

This meatloaf combines a national symbol of America(bison) with the three main agricultural crops of various Native American groups: corn, squash, and beans; with a version of Navajo fry bread holding it all together. Perfect for Thanksgiving if you're planning that far ahead!

I would've made this meatloaf around Thanksgiving but my jar of bison tallow expires in September. 

Fry bread is notoriously known for being unhealthy(according to Wikipedia, a plate of it is 700 calories!), but that's not why I followed this recipe to make baked fry bread- I just didn't want to have to deal with a pot of hot oil. 

The fry bread was crispy like a biscuit but didn't have any flavor to it, but I only made fry bread to make the meatloaf more authentically Native American. I added plain breadcrumbs to the meatloaf because i knew the fry bread, even when crumbled up, wasn't going to hold the meatloaf together on its own.

You don't even need any extra spices besides salt and pepper since the corn salsa provides all the spices. The meatloaf tasted spicy from the salsa but also sweet and crunchy from the bison. 

My dad liked the meatloaf, though I didn't know what he meant by saying it was a "classic bison meatloaf", since he's never had anything like that before. 


HELPFUL LINKS: 

Bison Tallow: www.amazon.com/Buffalo-Tallow-Grass-Pasture-Raised/dp/B01N7CQ12Y/ref=sr_1_5_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1501362924&sr=8-5&

​Corn Salsa: www.amazon.com/Trader-Joes-Chile-Tomato-less-Salsa/dp/B00QXZWF9A/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1501362897&sr=8-2&

​You will need: 

Baked Fry Bread 

Makes 5-6 slices 

For the cooking equipment: 

A large bowl
A baking sheet
Parchment paper
Nonstick cooking spray

For the bread: 

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. powdered milk
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup water

1. Mix the first 4 ingredients in a large bowl, then add the water. Mix all the ingredients until you get a dough, but be careful not to overmix it. 
2. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top of a baking sheet and spray the paper with nonstick cooking spray. 
3. Spoon the dough onto the parchment paper to make 5-6 slices. Flatten each slice of dough with the back of a spoon. 
4. Bake the bread in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 10 minutes, or until the center is no longer doughy. 

Native American Meatloaf

You will need:

For the cooking equipment: 

A frying pan
A spatula
A large bowl
A lasagna pan 
Nonstick cooking spray

For the meatloaf: 

1/2 chopped onion
2 tbsp. bison tallow(see HELPFUL LINKS)
2 beaten and whisked eggs 
1/2 cup corn salsa(see HELPFUL LINKS)
1/2 cup baked beans
1/2 cup butternut squash puree
Pinch of salt
Pinch of black pepper
Baked fry bread(see above)
Enough plain breadcrumbs to hold the meatloaf together
1 lb. ground bison

1. Put the bison tallow into a frying pan. Turn the stove on. Using a spoon and fork, spread the tallow around the pan until it's all melted. 
2. Once the tallow has melted, put the chopped onion into the frying pan and sautee the onions by moving them throughout the pan and coating them in the melted tallow with a spatula. Sautee the onions until they're translucent. 
3. Put the sauteed onions into a large bowl, along with the next 6 ingredients. 
4. Crumble up the baked fry bread and put the crumbled bread into the large bowl, along with some breadcrumbs and the ground bison. 
5. Mix all the ingredients up until you get a firm meatloaf mixture. If the mixture still isn't firm, add more breadcrumbs until firm. 
6. Spray a lasagna pan with nonstick cooking spray. Form 2 loaves from the meatloaf mixture.
7. Bake the meatloaves in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 90 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meatloaves reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Bon appetit! 

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