Lamb Shanks & Root Vegetable Puree with Bone Broth

Category Main course

Cooking Time 3 min

serves 3

Ingredients

Ingredients for the lamb shanks:

2 tablespoons of tallow fat or lard

2 lamb shanks (buy high-quality lamb)

2 stalks of diced celery

2 peeled and diced carrots

1 peeled and diced onion

1 rinsed and diced leek

2 – 4 peeled en diced garlic cloves

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

1 cup dry red wine

3 cups beef bone broth

3 to 4 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients for the root vegetable puree:

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and medium diced

2 parsnips, peeled and medium diced

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1/4 cup heavy warmed cream (optional)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

You don’t need to be a great chef to cook and enjoy this restaurant-worthy meal. Buy good quality lamb sharks, bone broth, and tallow fat. Read the directions, sip on a bottle of red wine while you cook, play some music, add a little tender love, and enjoy the process. This savory meal does the magic all year-’round.

Instructions

Instructions for the lamb shanks:

Pat the shanks dry and season them with salt.

Use a large Dutch oven. Heat the tallow fat over high heat. Add the shanks to the pan and brown well on all sides. Remove the shanks and set them aside.

Lower the heat to medium. Add the celery, carrots, onion, and leeks and sauté until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute. Stir in the tomato paste until the vegetables are well coated.

Pour in the red wine, increase heat to high, and reduce until almost cooked out. Add the beef bone broth, thyme, and bay leaves.

Nestle the shanks into the braising liquid. Season with salt and pepper, boil, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer the lamb for 2 – 2 1/2 hours, rotating the meat once during cooking time, until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.

Remove the shanks from the Dutch oven. Strain the braising liquid through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding cooked vegetables. Season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve the shanks atop root vegetable puree and drizzle with sauce.

Instructions root vegetable puree:

Use a medium saucepan. Cover the sweet potatoes, and parsnips with about 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until tender and easy to pierce with a knife, about 20 minutes.

Place the root vegetables in a food processor fitted with a blade. Add butter, warm cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Process until the vegetables are smooth, creamy puree. Return to the saucepan and keep warm on the lowest heat until ready.

The lamb sharks also are good served over mashed potatoes, creamy polenta, or pappardelle. Enjoy your meal with a bottle of red wine, great company, and music.

Remember simplicity is key!