When people hear Osso Buco, they generally think of veal. This recipe is for Lamb Osso Buco made with lamb shanks. Osso Buco is Italian for bone with a hole. This hole contains marrow which you can eat with a special marrow bone spoon or any spoon with a bowl small enough to fit into the hole-like a demitasse spoon.The hole in the lamb shank is smaller than that of the veal shank.
When you order the lamb shanks from your butcher; ask him to tie them for you. Tying them helps keep the meat on the bones as they soften in the braising liquid. The flavor of this Lamb Osso Buco is rich and delicious. This is definitely a filling meal. Be sure you have mashed potatoes or pasta to soak up the gravy.
For another recipe with lamb, try my Rack of Lamb with Pesto!
Prep time: 30 minutes
Lamb Osso Buco
By Published: February 24, 2017
Yield:
- 8
Ingredients
- 3 large carrots peeled, minced
- 1 large onion peeled,cored, minced
- 3 large Celery Stalks washed, trimmed, minced
- 6 large Cloves Garlic peeled, minced
- 8 lamb shanks tied
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 28 ounce can Organic Crushed Tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms soaked in water
- 36 ounces Dark Beer
Equipment
- electric food processor steel blade inserted
- large roasting pan with cover
- long handled tongs
- platter to gold browned lamb shanks
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
All the vegetables can be minced together in processor. Set aside.
- Rinse lamb shanks and pat dry. Sprinkle them on both sides with black pepper.
Cover porcini mushrooms with hot water to cover.
- Heat oil roasting pan over low flame. Add as many lamb shanks as the pan will hold. Brown shanks on one side and using long handled tongs, turjn them over and brown them on the other side. With the same tongs, remove them from pan and place on platter. Brown remaining shanks the same way.
- Add minced vegetables to roasting pan. Sauté them until they are very soft. Add tomatoes, thyme, and mushrooms with soaking liquid. Stir well. Add beer and stir again. Nestle lamb shanks in this vegetable mixture. Placing them with one bone going up and the next one going down will help you fit more in your roaster. Divide vegetable and lamb shanks between two pans if necessary. I get six shanks across the bottom of the roaster and lay two on top. Bring liquid to a boil, cover and then place roaster in the oven. Be careful! The roaster will be very heavy. After one hour, remove cover from roaster. Be careful again. A lot of steam will escape. If you have placed any shanks on top, exchange them with shanks lying on the bottom. Spoon sauce over the meat. Place cover back on roaster and braise for another hour. Check meat with a fork. It should be very soft. If it's not, braise for another 15 minutes at a time until it's done. Let lamb shanks and sauce cool.
- Lift out lamb and let it cool completely before wrapping it and placing it in the fridge. Do the same with the braising liquid. Overnight, the fat will congeal on top of the vegetables and you can remove it with a spoon. Snip the twine from each lamb shank and place them in a deep oven to table serving dish. Spoon sauce over and around the lamb shanks. Cover lightly with foil. Place in preheated 350°F oven for 30 minutes or until piping hot. Serve with pasta or mashed potatoes and a green vegetable.
