Lamb Shank Stew With Russet Potato Top Recipes

AROMATIC LAMB SHANK STEW

Steps:

• Put 3 tablespoons of the oil into a very large, wide, heavy-bottomed pan and warm over medium heat. Brown the lamb shanks, in batches, in the pan and then remove to a roasting pan or whatever else you've got at hand to sit them in.
• Peel the onions and garlic and process in a food processor or chop them finely by hand. Add the remaining oil to the pan, and fry the onion-garlic mush until soft, sprinkling salt over to stop it sticking.
• Stir in the turmeric, ground ginger, chile, cinnamon and nutmeg and season with some freshly ground pepper. Stir again, adding the honey, soy sauce and Marsala. Put the shanks back in the pan, add cold water almost to cover, bring to the boil then put a lid on the pan, lower the heat and simmer very gently for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender.
• Add the red lentils and cook for about 20 minutes longer with the lid, until the lentils have softened into the sauce and the juices have reduced and thickened slightly. Check for seasoning.
• Toast the nuts by heating them for a few minutes in a dry frying pan, and sprinkle onto the lamb as you serve it.
• Fill the bottom of a steamer, or base of a couscoussier should you possess one, with water and bring to a boil. When it looks like it's almost ready to boil, fill the kettle and put it on, then empty the couscous into a glass bowl, add the salt, crush in the cardamom and mix with your fingers, then pour over a quart of boiling water from the kettle and place a plate on top of the bowl. Leave to stand for 5 minutes, then drain and empty into the steamer or couscoussier top and sit this on top of the boiling water beneath. Add the slices of butter on top of the couscous then clamp on the lid and let steam for about 7 to 10 minutes, by which time the couscous should be tenderly cooked and the butter melting. (You can do this a simpler way if you prefer, by just steeping the couscous in the boiling water for 10 to 15 minutes, but the grains will be more dense and more likely to clump. It's not disastrous, however, and you must decide what you're prepared to do.)
• Meanwhile, toast the almonds by frying them in a dry pan until fragrant and golden, remove them to a plate, then do the same to the pine nuts. Chop the pistachios. Once the couscous is cooked, tip the bowl, fork through (and always use a fork for mixing or fluffing up couscous; a spoon will crush it and turn it stodgy), sprinkling in the almonds and pine nuts as you do so (and taste for seasoning at the same time, too). Now fork in most of the pistachios, and sprinkle those that remain lightly on top.

LAMB SHANKS AND POTATOES

Steps:

• In a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, stir together tomatoes and puree, tomato paste, jam, garlic, orange zest, rosemary, ginger, and cinnamon. Season with salt and pepper. Add lamb and potatoes, stirring to combine.
• Cover, and cook on low for 8 hours (or on high for 5 hours), until lamb and potatoes are tender. Season again with salt and pepper, if desired. Serve.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Follow step 1 (above), using a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot with a tight fitting lid instead of the slow cooker. Add 2 cups water, and cover. Transfer to oven; cook until lamb and potatoes are tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

LAMB SHANK STEW WITH RUSSET POTATOES

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350°F (180°C). On a large plate, generously season the flour with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge the lamb shanks in the flour.
• In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the shanks to the pot and sear, turning occasionally, until browned all over, about 10 minutes total. Transfer the shanks to a plate and set aside.
• Add the garlic, carrots, onion, bay leaf, thyme and cloves to the pot; sauté until aromatic, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the wine, broth and barley, then return the shanks to pot. Cover the pot, transfer to the oven and braise for 2 hours.
• About 15 minutes before the shanks are ready to come out of the oven, make the garlic-parsley butter: Finely chop the garlic, drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Using the flat side of a chef's knife, mash the garlic together with the oil and salt to form a paste. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the parsley. Set aside.
• In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Add the garlic-parsley mixture and cook until aromatic and the garlic is softened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Peel the potatoes and cut each lengthwise into large wedges.

STOUT-BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large, wide pot over medium-high heat until the oil begins to smoke. Brown the lamb shanks in the hot oil on all sides until well browned, about 10 minutes. Remove lamb shanks and set aside. Pour the excess grease from the Dutch oven, reduce heat to medium, and stir in the onions and garlic. Cook and stir until the onions have softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the carrots, celery, and tomato paste; continue cooking 5 minutes more.
• Return the lamb shanks to the Dutch oven, and pour in the stout beer and beef broth. Bring to a simmer over high heat. While you're waiting for the beer to simmer, use kitchen twine to tie together the thyme sprigs, parsley sprigs, and bay leaf into a secure bundle; add to the lamb shanks.
• Once the lamb shanks begin to simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the lamb is very tender and nearly falling off of the bone, 2 to 3 hours. Stir the lamb occasionally as it cooks, and add water if needed to keep the cooking liquid from becoming too thick. You want the cooking liquid to have reduced into a nice sauce by the time the lamb shanks are done. Stir in the rosemary sprig, and salt and pepper to taste during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Remove rosemary sprig and herb bundle before serving.

ROSEMARY BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Sprinkle shanks with salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook shanks until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer shanks to plate.
• Add onions, carrots and garlic to pot and saute until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine, tomatoes, chicken broth and beef broth. Season with rosemary and thyme. Return shanks to pot, pressing down to submerge. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover, and simmer until meat is tender, about 2 hours.
• Remove cover from pot. Simmer about 20 minutes longer. Transfer shanks to platter, place in a warm oven. Boil juices in pot until thickened, about 15 minutes. Spoon over shanks.