Table Talk
Lamb Shanks with Orange, Wine & Rosemary
I'm a fan of lamb. I grew up eating leg of lamb, which my parents roasted with cloves of garlic. They served it with rice and a delicious gravy made from the pan drippings. Really yummy. Since then, I've eaten lamb a variety of ways, my favorites being a lovely rack of lamb with a mustard herb crust and leg of lamb marinated in wine and herbs and grilled medium-rare (another recipe of my father's). But one lamb cut I'd never tried is the lamb shank. Frankly, they don't look very appealing--lots of bone and fat. I prefer my meat lean. I prefer my meat cooked quickly and on the rare side; shanks must be cooked long and slow, delivering a very different result.
But I am an adventurer with food. I love to try new things. So, I recently was perusing the lamb section in the grocery store and stumbled on a package containing a couple of pretty good looking lamb shanks. After surfing online for recipes, I came across a recipe from chef Lidia Bastianich for Braised Lamb Shanks [with Orange, Wine & Rosemary]. She served it over a soft polenta, which is just what I was in the mood for.
This is a recipe that required a time commitment. It was easy to pull off, but required most of an afternoon. Because the lamb required 3 hours start to finish, I started chopping and sauteing onions at 2:30. I tied the herbs up in a cheesecloth pouch, cut off the thin upper layer of orange peel, soaked the porcini mushrooms and browned the lamb. Once I'd added the wine & broth, the pan was covered and left to cook for the rest of the afternoon.
By the time my husband Charles arrived home at 6:00, the lamb was fragrant and tender and the house smelled wonderful. I followed Lydia's suggestion and served it on soft polenta, asparagus with parmesan on the side. And what a meal it was. The braising had cooked away most of the fat, and left a tender, meaty dish, with an incredible sauce, filled with onion & mushroom and lightly flavored with orange. It was really fantastic.
So I'm a fan of the humble lamb shank after all.
Braised Lamb Shanks [with Orange, Wine & Rosemary]
2 cups hot water
1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms*
2 large oranges
4 Turkish bay leaves
2 large fresh rosemary sprigs
4 whole cloves
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups finely chopped onions
6 1-pound lamb shanks
1 cup dry red wine (such as Barolo)
1/4 cup tomato paste
8 cups low-salt chicken broth
Combine 2 cups hot water and mushrooms in small bowl. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 30 minutes.
Using vegetable peeler, remove peel (orange part only) from oranges in long strips. Squeeze juice from oranges; reserve peel and juice. Tie bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, and cloves in square of moistened cheesecloth.
Heat 4 tablespoons olive oil in wide pot over medium-high heat. Add onions; sauté until golden, about 12 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer onions to small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons oil to pot. Sprinkle lamb with salt and pepper. Add 3 lamb shanks to pot. Sauté until brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining shanks. Return onions to pot. Using slotted spoon, add mushrooms, then mushroom soaking liquid, leaving any sediment in bowl. Add orange peel and juice, herb bundle, wine, and tomato paste. Boil 5 minutes, scraping up browned bits.
Return lamb to pot, arranging in single layer. Add broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover; simmer 30 minutes. Partially uncover pot. Simmer until lamb is tender, turning every 15 minutes, about 1 1/2 hours longer.
Transfer lamb to bowl. Tilt pot and spoon fat off top of sauce. Boil until sauce is thick enough to coat spoon lightly and is reduced to 5 cups, about 35 minutes. Discard herb bundle and orange peel. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Return lamb to pot, spooning sauce over to coat. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Refrigerate lamb, uncovered, until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated. Rewarm over low heat before continuing.)
Spoon polenta onto large platter. Arrange lamb atop polenta. Spoon sauce over lamb and serve.
*Dried porcini mushrooms are available at Italian markets, specialty foods stores, and many supermarkets.
chef Lidia Bastianich
Bon Appétit, September 2003
