Braised Lamb Shank - Traditional Easter Fare

By Mark Steele, Executive Chef

Spring’s return and Easter celebrations go hand in hand.  In fact, the Easter feast dates back to Anglo-Saxon times when villagers paid homage to the goddess of offspring and springtime, Easter.

For Easter this year, I plan to keep things traditional by serving spring lamb to my crowd at home. We’ll be in good company…from what I’ve read, the Pope is served a roasted lamb every year on Easter.

For my family, and I’m sure many of you reading this, roasting a whole lamb simply isn’t an option. However, there are many other ways to cook lamb that will result in a mouthwatering, tender meat that will complement the rest of your Easter spread.

One of my favourite dishes is braised lamb shanks. The braising process is really very simple, but it does require patience. Ideally, lamb shanks should braise for 3 hours, but I think you’ll agree that the results are worth the time commitment.

If you’re considering serving lamb at your Easter feast this year, why not try the following recipe, suitable for the intermediate chef?

Braised Lamb Shanks

Serves 6
Ingredients
        2 cup beef stock
        6 lamb shank
        6 tablespoons canola oil
        2 cups red wine (the better for drinking, the better for cooking)
        2 celery stalks diced
        4 carrots peeled and diced
        1 large spanish onion, peeled and diced
        8 cloves garlic peeled and crushed
        4 rosemary stalks
        6 thyme stalks
          salt and pepper to taste
       
Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 335F
2. Heat half the Canola oil to a large skillet over a medium high heat till the oil is hot but not smoking. Season the shanks with salt and pepper. Add two or three of the shanks to the skillet ( whatever you can fit comfortably) and brown on all sides. Remove the browned shanks to a large roasting pan along with carrots, onion, celery, garlic, rosemary and thyme.
3. Pour off the excess oil without cleaning the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining oil to the same skillet and repeat the process for the next 3 shanks.
4. Deglaze the hot skillet with 1 cup of the red wine, scraping up all the brown bits and continue to cook wine for 1 - 2 minutes then pour the deglazed liquid into the roasting pan.
5. Add the remaining wine and beef stock to the roasting pan.
6. Cover and cook in the middle of the oven for at least 3 hours, or until the meat falls away from the bone at the touch of a fork
7. Remove the shanks from the roasting pan and set aside.
8. Strain the liquid from the roasting pan into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over a high heat. Reduce heat to medium until the sauce reduces by half.
9. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the lamb.

Chef’s Tip

When a recipe calls for wine, do not reach for the cheapest bottle on the shelf. A general rule is that the better a wine is for drinking, the better it is for cooking.  

After graduating from the Culinary Program at C.O.N.A. (College of the North Atlantic), Mark worked at four different Fairmont properties over 10 years and later owned a fine dining restaurant. 

Mark joins us from his last stint as Executive Chef for Hilton Hotels.