I bought Molly Stevens' book on All About Braising last summer. Yep, I've been thinking about braises all this time. I think braising is one of the best techniques out there for the lazy cook. It has minimal preparation but gives maximum flavors. I've made my fair share of beef stews, although I do believe that I haven't encountered the best recipe for it yet. I always think that there's a missing component in terms of flavor, but I'll find out one day.
After trying this braised lamb shanks recipe from Molly Stevens' book, I don't think I'll order another lamb shank dish in a restaurant again, knowing that I can make this myself. Of course, I altered the recipe a bit since I'm only eating by myself. The original recipe called for 6 shanks, but I only bought 2. Here's the list of ingredients and the steps:
1. Preheat your oven to 160C. Brown 2 pieces of lamb shanks in a casserole pot. Set aside. The original recipe dredged the shanks in a flour mixture of paprika, salt and pepper, but I skipped this step.
2. Brown 2 chopped onions, 2 minced garlic cloves, paprika, salt and pepper until translucent. Pour in 1/4 cup of dry white wine or vermouth. Scrape the yummy bits off the bottom of the pot.
3. Next, pour half a bottle of passata. The original recipe called for fresh tomatoes or canned, since I only have passata at hand, that's what I used.
4. Add the zest of 1 lemon, 2 bay leaves and dried parsley. The original recipe added fresh chopped parsley at the end.
5. Pour in 3/4 cup of water. The original recipe used chicken stock.
6. Once it starts boiling, place the shanks back to the pot. Place a piece of baking paper on top of the pot and press down to the shanks. I didn't bother cutting the baking paper to fit the shape of the pot.
7. Place the lid on the pot and slide into the oven to cook for 1 hr. The original recipe called for 2.5 hrs.
8. Make sure to turn the lamb shanks after 35-45 mins. While the shanks are cooking, peel the lemon and segment it. Squeeze the juice after segmenting the lemon and set aside. You should end up with a bowl with segmented lemon wedges and the lemon juice.
9. Once you've checked that the shanks are fork tender, place the shanks onto a plate.
10. Bring the pot with the sauce to a boil and reduce to your liking. Add the lemon segments and lemon juice. The original recipe added olives.
I know this sounds like a long process but hey, you practically don't have to do anything for 2 hours. The result is a burst of rich flavors - tangy and sweet with fork tender lamb shanks....I was in food heaven! Pair with crusty bread or baked potatoes.
After trying this braised lamb shanks recipe from Molly Stevens' book, I don't think I'll order another lamb shank dish in a restaurant again, knowing that I can make this myself. Of course, I altered the recipe a bit since I'm only eating by myself. The original recipe called for 6 shanks, but I only bought 2. Here's the list of ingredients and the steps:
1. Preheat your oven to 160C. Brown 2 pieces of lamb shanks in a casserole pot. Set aside. The original recipe dredged the shanks in a flour mixture of paprika, salt and pepper, but I skipped this step.
2. Brown 2 chopped onions, 2 minced garlic cloves, paprika, salt and pepper until translucent. Pour in 1/4 cup of dry white wine or vermouth. Scrape the yummy bits off the bottom of the pot.
3. Next, pour half a bottle of passata. The original recipe called for fresh tomatoes or canned, since I only have passata at hand, that's what I used.
4. Add the zest of 1 lemon, 2 bay leaves and dried parsley. The original recipe added fresh chopped parsley at the end.
5. Pour in 3/4 cup of water. The original recipe used chicken stock.
6. Once it starts boiling, place the shanks back to the pot. Place a piece of baking paper on top of the pot and press down to the shanks. I didn't bother cutting the baking paper to fit the shape of the pot.
7. Place the lid on the pot and slide into the oven to cook for 1 hr. The original recipe called for 2.5 hrs.
8. Make sure to turn the lamb shanks after 35-45 mins. While the shanks are cooking, peel the lemon and segment it. Squeeze the juice after segmenting the lemon and set aside. You should end up with a bowl with segmented lemon wedges and the lemon juice.
9. Once you've checked that the shanks are fork tender, place the shanks onto a plate.
10. Bring the pot with the sauce to a boil and reduce to your liking. Add the lemon segments and lemon juice. The original recipe added olives.
I know this sounds like a long process but hey, you practically don't have to do anything for 2 hours. The result is a burst of rich flavors - tangy and sweet with fork tender lamb shanks....I was in food heaven! Pair with crusty bread or baked potatoes.
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