Braised Lamb Shanks Recipe

A classic way to prepare shanks, these are slow-cooked in a deeply flavored red wine sauce until they are meltingly tender. You can't taste the red wine at the end, it completely transforms into a rich sauce. Make this in the oven, on your stove, or even in a slow cooker - instructions provided for all!

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Course: Dinner

Cuisine: African

Keyword: Braised lamb shanks, lamd shanks

CookingStyle: Baking

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 2 50

Total Time: 3 14

Servings:

Calories: 944kcal

Author: Black Pie

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Equipment

Oven

saucepan

pot

Ingredients

4 lamb shanks with meat about 1 ¼ pound each
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large carrots diced
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp of cumin powder
½ tsp cinnamon powder
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
½ tsp coriander powder
¼ tsp allspice powder
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp Harissa or another chili
1 28- ounce can of whole tomatoes peel, drain, and chop
1 cup dry red wine
2 cups canned chicken broth or low sodium broth
2 tbsp cilantro chopped
¼ cup finely chopped almonds
2 spoons of chopped mint
1 10- ounce can of instant couscous
1 large chopped shallot
2 tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup dried currants
1 cup of water

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 330 degrees F
In a bowl, place the lamb shanks and season generously with salt and pepper.
Heat up 2 spoonfuls of cooking oil in a saucepan and add the seasoned meat to the pan. Cook over medium heat for 12 minutes or until golden browned on all sides. Remove from the pan.
Clean the pan and add the onions, garlic, and carrots to it. Sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes or until the onion is golden. Then, add the coriander, cumin, allspice, nutmeg, and cinnamon and keep stirring for a few more minutes until it’s slightly roasted.
Add the harissa and tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes over medium-high heat. Stir frequently.
Pour the wine into the pot and boil for 4 minutes until a thick syrup forms.
Add the tomatoes and 1 cup chicken broth to the pan. Add salt, pepper, and bring to a boil.
Place the leg of lamb in the liquid.
Cover well and cook for about 3 hours in the oven, basting from time to time until the meat almost falls from the bone.
Place the shanks in a bowl and cover with aluminum foil. Leave the oven on.
In a pie pan, place the almonds and roast them for about 10 minutes or until golden.
Strain the sauce using a colander into a bowl, pressing on the vegetables and skimming any fat.
Return the sauce to the pan and cook over high heat for about 10 minutes.
Return the vegetables and lamb to the sauce, and keep warm.
Combine mint with coriander and almonds in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.
Add the shallots and cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes.18. Add couscous and cook 2 to 3 minutes until light brown.
Add 1 cup chicken broth, water, and 1⁄4 tsp salt and leave to boil.
Remove from heat and add the currants.
Cover and let stand 10 minutes.
Grind with a fork and add half the mixture of spices and almonds.
Stack the couscous in the center of a large plate.
Wrap the lamb legs around the couscous and garnish with the sauce.
Sprinkle with the rest of the herbs and almond mixture and serve.

Video

Notes

Lamb Shanks sizes vary considerably so make sure you get ones that will fit in your cooking vessel!
Onion and carrot are the "holy couple" of slow cooking, creating a beautiful flavor base for the sauce. It's not a deal-breaker to exclude the carrot, but it does give the sauce an extra edge.
Wine: Use a good value full-bodied red wine, like cabaret sauvignon or merlot. Shiraz is okay too.

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Nutrition

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the Spoonacular Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.