JAS_OH1
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My husband is an absolute fan of lamb dishes, especially lamb chops. Over the past several years, I have become fond of lamb as well and have prepared lamb chops at home several times. Near the end of last year, I tasted the braised lamb shanks my husband had ordered at a restaurant (the first time for both of us) and we were wowed by how fall-off-the-bone tender, juicy, and flavorful they were! He begged me to try to make them at home. The first time I made them, I braised them with a full-bodied red wine, and they were a huge success. It got me thinking about that lonely half a bottle of leftover dry Marsala wine I had used when making chicken Marsala and how the flavorful sauce would pair so well with lamb shanks, so I decided to give it a go. We are also big garlic and mushroom fans, so why not amplify the deliciousness even more? I'm so glad that I did, this meal was amazing! I hope you like it as much as we did.
Notes:
It's important to use a good quality dry Marsala wine, not the kind you will find in the main aisle of the grocery store but wll most likely be located in the wine section of the store. A dutch oven or other large baking vessel with a heavy lid is needed. I used my enameled cast iron pot with lid. I also recently heard about "cleaning" lamb. If the lamb is possibly from an older animal or due to diet or breed and has a stronger "gamey" scent than you are used to, cleaning it might be a good option. SImply soak the lamb meat in a mixture of cold water and a few TBSP of vinegar or lemon juice for 10-15 minutes. It's also important to remove as much of the silver skin and fat from the lamb as possible. I also implemented a "Frenching" method for the lamb shanks that makes for a nicer presentation. It also allows the meat to plump up and retain it's juices, as the connective tissues are not stretching and constricting the meat. How to French your lamb shanks Another tip: I use tubed tomato paste that comes with a lid, since I generally only need a few TBSP in various recipes. I can store it for months in my refrigerator instead of buying a can of paste and wasting most of it.
Also, I used an entire semi-roasted bulb of garlic (semi-roasting mellows the harshness of the garlic and also makes the cloves easy to peel) for this recipe and 10 ounces of mushrooms. To semi-roast the garlic, wash the bulb and wrap it in foil, then bake it (I used my countertop toaster oven) on 375F for about 18 minutes. The garlic will still be firm and the "paper" will slide off the cloves easily. It's simple enough to reduce the amount of garlic if you don't love it as much as I do, but since mushrooms are like sponges, if you use less or no mushrooms in this dish you will have to alter the amount of braising liquids used and possibly the seasoning levels as well. Additionally, I chose to serve the lamb chops over goat cheese infused mashed potatoes with lightly sauteed spinach around the sides, though I think risotto and asparagus would do quite well here. I used chopped parsley for a garnish, but diced scallions or chives would work nicely.
This recipe serves 2 to 4 people, depending on appetites (My husband and I split one shank).
Preparation and cooking time: approximately 4 hours.
Ingredients:
2 lamb shanks (approximately 8-10 ounces each)
1 tsp salt (initially, taste after sauce reduces and add more if needed)
1/2 tsp pepper
1 bulb of semi-roasted garlic (peel cloves and smash with a fork)
2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 medium size shallot, diced
1 and 1/4 cup good dry Marsala wine (I used Florio, costs about $15 a bottle)
1 and 1/4 cup chicken broth
1 TBSP tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
2 small bay leaves
2 TBSP balsamic vinegar
2 TBSP of butter (for sauteeing the mushrooms)
10 ounces of sliced mushrooms (I used white button)
Parsley, scallions, or chives for garnish
Step 1:
Preheat your oven to 350F. After cleaning, Frenching, and removing the fat and silver skin as much as possible, season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the olive oil in the cooking pot on the stovetop and add the lamb shanks. Cook on medium heat and turn every few minutes with tongs until the shanks are nicely browned on as much surface area as possible. Remove the lamb shanks and put them on a plate. Add the diced shallots and sautee on low heat until translucent. Add the chicken broth, Marsala wine, balsamic vinegar, smashed garlic, rosemary, bay leaves, and tomato paste to the pan and stir until blended. Place the lamb shanks into the pot and bring to a low simmer (don't add the mushrooms yet, those go in later). Cover the pot with the lid and place in the oven.
Step 3:
Throughout the first half of the cooking process, occasionally remove the pot from the oven and flip the shanks over. This is a good way to gauge the tenderness of the lamb shanks to determine how much longer they should cook (you want them to be almost falling-apart tender at the end). When they are fully cooked, do not flip them, instead baste them with braising liquid a few times. During the cooking time, prepare any side dishes. Near the end of the cooking time, sautee the sliced mushrooms in butter on medium heat until browned and add the mushrooms to the pot for about 15 minutes so they can absorb some of the braising liquid. Turn off the oven heat and remove the pot from the oven. Carefully remove the lamb shanks from the cooking pot, placing them in a baking dish with slightly raised sides. Using a slotted spoon, cover the shanks with the mushrooms to help retain moisture in the meat while you reduce the braising liquid (it's okay if a few of the mushrooms stay in the braising liquid as it reduces). You can cover and put the baking dish in the oven to stay warm with the residual heat from cooking.
Step 4:
Place the cooking pot on the burner and turn it up to medium high heat until the sauce reduces to the desired consistency. At this point and no sooner, taste and add additional salt if needed (if you add salt before the liquid has reduced it likely will be too salty). Turn the heat down to low, put the shanks back in the pan, and cover for a few minutes. Warm up the side items, plate your food, add garnishes, and enjoy!
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