Braised Lamb Shanks
I’m gonna jump right out there and say that lamb is my favorite meat. And this is probably my favorite dish—to both cook and eat. I love that lamb shanks look like something out of the Flintstones, even though one shank is the perfect size for one person. On a cold winter night when I’m home making dinner for my family, this is definitely my go-to recipe. Like any braise, it takes a bit of effort to get started, but once you get them going, you can just toss the shanks in the oven and let them go on their lamby way.
Recipe information
Yield
serves: 4
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
Step 2
Season the lamb generously with salt. Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Add the lamb to the pan and brown well on all sides; this may take up to 20 minutes. This is an incredibly important step—it’s where all the big brown flavors start to develop—DON’T rush it.
Step 3
While the lamb is browning, put the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic in a food processor and purée to a coarse paste; reserve.
Step 4
When the lamb shanks are very brown on all sides, remove them from the pan and transfer to a roasting pan. Ditch the fat, add a bit of fresh olive oil to the sauté pan, and add the puréed veggies. Season generously with salt, and cook until the veggies are very brown and a crud has formed on the bottom of the pan, 8 to 10 minutes. Scrape the crud and let it reform. Don’t rush this step.
Step 5
Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until it starts to brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
Step 6
Add the wine, bring it to a boil (BTB), and stir frequently to scrape the crud from the bottom of the pan (this is the big-money flavor). Continue cooking until reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes.
Step 7
Add 3 to 4 cups water to the pan and stir to loosen the mixture. Taste to make sure it’s delicious and reseason if needed. It will by no means be done, but it should taste good. Pour this over the shanks in the roasting pan. The liquid should come two-thirds of the way up the shanks; if it doesn’t add more water. Toss in the rosemary, bay leaves, and thyme bundle, cover with aluminum foil, and cook in the oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Check the shanks every 45 minutes, turn them, and if the liquid has reduced significantly, add more water. When the meat is done, it will be very tender but not falling off the bone.
Step 8
Remove the foil for the last 30 minutes of cooking time for maximum browning and to allow the liquid to reduce and thicken up. Serve with lots of sauce.
BROWNING AND BRAISING: Because Brown Food Tastes Good!
Step 9
When I was in culinary school, I didn’t get braising; it seemed like a pain in the neck. I had to go through so many steps to get started and I just didn’t think it was worth the trouble. Now that I get it, it’s my favorite cooking technique by far. Trust me: Braising is the technique that will showcase your skill as a cook! It doesn’t matter what you’re braising—if you follow my method you will make a beautiful, brown braise every time.
Step 10
First, season generously and brown your protein well—whether it’s a shank or a short rib, take your time. This is where the first big brown flavors develop and it takes patience—so don’t rush it. What’s important at this point is what’s happening in your pan, not on the clock.
Step 11
Once your meat is nice and brown, remove it, ditch the fat, add a splash of fresh olive oil to the pan, add your puréed veggies, and season again. These vegetables are what we call soffritto and they’re the base of almost all braised dishes. Like the meat, you want to brown the crap out of the soffritto. Cook it until you see a crud start to form on the bottom of the pan, then scrape off the crud and let it form again. This is where we take things to the edge of disaster and yank them back. Food is the most flavorful one step before disaster!
Step 12
After the soffritto is nice and brown, add your wine and tomato paste. Let the wine reduce by half, toss the protein back in the pan, and add enough water to cover it by about two-thirds—it should be nice and soupy. Then toss in a thyme bundle and bay leaves, bring it to a boil (BTB), reduce it to a simmer (RTS), and cook until things are nice and tender, usually a couple of hours.
Step 13
Properly braised food should be very tender but still maintain its integrity and shape—it should NOT be falling off the bone. So check your braise along the way, and if the liquid level gets low, add a bit more water until the meat is perfectly tender and the sauce is super-flavorful. Follow this basic braising technique and your brown food will taste great . . . every time!
