anchovies
anchovy
braised
casserole
Lamb shanks
polenta
slow-cooking
Braised lamb shanks with red wine & anchovies
Cooking lamb shanks can take a bit of time, but the investment is totally worth it. If you have a slow cooker, you can leave them to bubble away while you are at work and come home to the house full of the lovely scent of slow-cooked lamb. For me, I prefer to cook them on a chilly Sunday afternoon, when I have the time to let them cook for 7-8 hours. I recently developed this recipe by trial and error, and have managed to shave about 5 hours off by using the method of braising. That's where you sear the meat at a high temp in a pan, sealing all the juices in. Then you add liquids to the pan and cook it at a gentle heat over several hours, to ensure the meat is nice and tender, and super tasty. So as I said, this recipe has been perfected through trial and error, although I do have to attribute the addition of anchovies as a seasoning, to UK chef Nigel Slater. If you are using a glazed oven proof pan, ensure you heat it up gradually and never add cold liquids to a hot pan (like I did with my $300 Chasseur last year). I make sure I heat the stock in the microwave and add the vinegar and port to the warm stock before adding to the pan. Just a tip!
Ingredients
2 medium size lamb shanks
1 tab olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
2 sticks celery, roughly chopped
2 small carrots, washed and roughly chopped (no need to peel)
2-4 anchovy fillets (or however many you want, really)
2 medium sized onions, chopped roughly
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
4 cloves fresh garlic (or minced)
250ml red wine
1 tsp sugar
50ml red wine vinegar
500ml beef stock
50ml port wine
Method
1. Season Lamb Shanks, then brown them in oil, in a heavy-based oven-proof pan over a high heat until golden brown. Remove shanks from the pan and set aside.
2. Add anchovies, celery, carrot, onion, herbs and garlic to the pan, and cook until softed slightly.
3. Add red wine and sugar, and de-glaze the pan (gently dissolving all the bits of lamb stuck to the pan)
4. Continue stirring for a couple of minutes or until the red wine reduces down.
5. Gently lower the shanks back in, and add the vinegar, stock and port.
6. Bring to the boil, then turn down to a gentle heat.
7. Simmer for 2.5 - 3 hours or until meat is falling off the bone.
8. When it's time to serve, carefully scoop out any bits of oil floating on the surface of the sauce with a spoon.
9. Remove the shanks and set aside, and pour the sauce through a fine sieve or muslin cloth.
10. Serve shanks with mashed potato or polenta with green veg and a little of the sauce poured over the top.
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