Lamb shanks in red wine sauce
When slowly cooked, lamb shanks become succulent, juicy, full of flavor and have a bone filled with nourishing marrow that melts in your mouth. The transformation continues with the braising liquid turning into a thick, rich, red sauce that is so versatile and tasty you just can't resist pouring it over everything!
Ingredients
- 5 lamb shanks
- ½ cup tapioca starch or corn flour +2 teaspoons extra for thickening the sauce at the end
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked pepper
- ½ cup olive oil + 2 tablespoons extra
- 1 large onion finely diced
- 2 carrots finely diced
- 3 celery stalks finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves finely diced
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 1 cup dry red wine (cabernet sauvignon or Shiraz)
- 2 cups tomato puree (tomato Passata)
- 1 teaspoon raw sugar (optional)
- 3 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dry
- 1 spring of fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dry
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage or 1 teaspoon dry
- 1-2 cups of liquid (water or stock)
Instructions
- Mix the ½ cup of tapioca, salt and pepper in a small plastic food storage bag and add the lamb shanks. Close the bag and shake to coat the meat well.
- In a deep, heavy-based casserole, heat the olive oil on high heat and sear the lamb shanks in two batches. Make sure the meat is browned well on all sides; this will take about 5 minutes. Remove lamb shanks onto a plate, cover and leave on the side.
- In the same casserole, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic and satay for couple more minutes until the onion is translucent.
- Add the tomato paste and stir well until it coats the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the lamb shanks back into the casserole together with the wine. Continue cooking with the lid off for 2 more minutes for the alcohol to evaporate.
- Lastly, add the Passata, optional raw sugar, herbs and enough water or stock to cover the meaty end of the lamb shanks. Bring to the boil.
- Cover with the lid and cook on the stovetop on low heat for around 11/2-2 hours. Check and turn the lamb shanks once. When cooking on the stovetop, the liquid evaporates quickly, and the food can easily burn; keep checking it after the hour, making sure the bottom of the pot isn't catching.
- If the sauce hasn't thickened enough at the end of the cooking time, you can uncover and increase the temperature to high for a couple more minutes but keep an eye on it. The sauce will reduce and thicken a little more.
- Alternatively, you can thicken the sauce with tapioca starch or corn flour. Mix ½ cup of water with the reserved 2 tablespoons of tapioca starch, and while still boiling, add a tablespoon at a time of the tapioca mix to the pot while stirring. It will start thickening. Wait a few seconds before you add more. You don't want it to be too thick. Depending on how much liquid you have left, you might not use all the tapioca mix.
- Discard the fresh rosemary and thyme springs if using and serve over pasta or mashed potatoes (check my suggestions above on other ways to serve the lamb shanks).
Notes
1. I recommend using a wide casserole to place lamb shanks in one layer; that way, the lamb shanks will be submerged in the liquid, and the bones will release their flavor into the sauce while boiling. 2. The lamb shanks can be cooked: -in the oven. Use a baking dish with a fitted lid or cover the oven tray with a sheet of baking paper and then a large piece of foil over this, making sure it's sealed tight around the edges. Cook covered for 4-5 hours on 140ºC. Uncover the last 20minutes and increase the temperature to 180ºC to brown the meat.
If you are short of time, increase the oven temperature to 180ºC and only cook for around 2 hours, depending on the size of your lamb shanks. -in a slow cooker on low for 7 hours, transfer the sauce to the stovetop to reduce and thicken. -in a pressure cooker on low for 30-40min. 3. Serve over pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, creamy polenta or buttery cauliflower mash.
If you are short of time, increase the oven temperature to 180ºC and only cook for around 2 hours, depending on the size of your lamb shanks. -in a slow cooker on low for 7 hours, transfer the sauce to the stovetop to reduce and thicken. -in a pressure cooker on low for 30-40min. 3. Serve over pasta, rice, mashed potatoes, creamy polenta or buttery cauliflower mash.
Nutrition
Calories: 602kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 43gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 793mgPotassium: 1185mgFiber: 4gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 4788IUVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 71mgIron: 6mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!