Your Favorite Lamb Shank Recipes, Please

[nofunlatte]

My lamb purveyor at my local farmer's market will be bringing lamb shanks to market on Saturday. I've never made lamb shanks before, but I'd like to try to make some. Any favorite recipes? Please share!

[halimundy]

I love Mark Bittman's recipe for Lamb Shanks with Green Lentils. It is very easy and delicious.

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/27/din...

[nofunlatte]

Oh, my, so many delicious sounding suggestions! I wonder if this means that I'll have to buy up all that the sheep folk have :)

[brooklynkoshereater]

i've made lamb shanks a bunch of time - i really like bobby flay's recipe on food network - the orzo side is delish as well.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bo...

[ElizabethS]

I have cooked lamb shanks for years in many of the ways described above and love them all - but this past weekend a friend made this recipe from Patricia Wells and I will never go back - I admit to skepticism at the outset when she cooked them for one hour at 450 degrees standing in a dutch oven - then covers them in only wine and chicken stock - but the results were sublime. Crisp, tender, luscious...... BTW - she used Chinese Five Spice which was delicious too

Here's a link - I think that's OK to do - can't keep the rules here straight.

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/as...

[greygarious]

She calls for a covered "roasting pan", so I get the use of the dutch oven. By "stand", does it mean upright, bony end up, meaty end down? If so, once the meat begins to shrink, don't they fall over?

[ElizabethS]

For the first hour the shanks stand bone end up - wide enddown - in the dutch oven (actually she used a Le Creuset 6 quart round pot) with the lid off for this part of the recipe - they did shrink somewhat but ended up sort of leaning against each other.

[nissenpa]

Mist Grill Minted Braised Lamb Shanks from Molly Steven's All About Braising. Page 413. Out of this world. The shanks are brined in a salt/sugar/mint solution overnight and then braised. Serve them with Mint jelly. Incredible.

You really can't go wrong with lamb shanks no matter how you prepare them. Enjoy.

[GretchenS]

My favorite is the Mario Batali recipe with olives and oranges. Recipe here http://www.staceysnacksonline.com/2009/02/lamb-shanks-w-oranges-olives.html
and COTM discussion of recipe here http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/5614...

[chileheadmike]

I marinate overnight in
White wine
Lemon juice
Olive oil
Garlic
Rosemary
Oregano
S&P

Fire up the smoker with a few chunks of grape vine and let smoke a 250 for a few hours until tender.

[silverhawk]

my favorite lamb shanks recipe comes from tom valenti. see <welcome to my kitchen> one of his few books. essentially it involves a mirepoix base, a bit of tomato paste, a couple of anchovies, red wine, torn up canned tomatoes, some dark chicken stock, thyme, garlic and heavily browned shanks, cooked slowly in a slow oven first covered and then uncovered and turned frequently to expose all parts of the shanks to some dry heat. the volume of the braising liquid being scaled to come half-way or so up the shanks. note, too, that valenti is hugely interested in playing with sweet/acid balance and so he adds a bit of sugar and vinegar. well, and salt/pepper along the way, of course.

we usually serve this with soft polenta.

[morwen]

This is the way I make shanks except I do it the day before serving because the flavors meld nicely, rewarm it in the oven, then pull the shanks and heat them a little longer on a sheet pan to deepen the outer crust a little, maybe 10 min. or so. While the shanks are crusting I squeeze and stir lemon juice into the sauce to brighten it.

[silverhawk]

i use a lemon zest/parsley gremolata as a garnish for similar reasons.

[Val]

If by any chance you have a pressure-cooker, this recipe is so delightful--have made it using beef short ribs, too.
http://www.recipezaar.com/Lamb-Shanks...

[greygarious]

I make my mom's lima bean soup with them - no recipe for either of us. Use dried lima beans, which whenc ooked are the big, creamy bean that is sold in cans as butter beans, in contrast to the little green lima that is sold frozen. The two taste very different. Sear a large shank - the size of a man's fist (or use 2 smaller ones). Add a fist-sized onion, chopped, 2-3 stalks of celery, chopped, a pound of dry lima beans (not soaked), and 2 qts of water. Simmer covered until the beans are nearly done and the meat is very tender, about 2 hrs (ading water if needed to keep ingredients covered. Then add 2-3 chopped carrots and simmer until carrots are done. Remove meat from bones, pull into bite-sized pieces, and return to soup. Some of the beans will have split, thickening the soup, and it will get thicker once it cools. I usually add a little Kitchen Bouquet (or Gravy Master) or dry onion soup mix just to darken the color a little because the broth is not a deep brown. Salt and pepper to taste.

[Axalady]

Claudia Wolfert's Tangia of Lamb Shanks With Saffron and Cumin. Delicious!

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/recipes/2008/02/13/tangia-lamb-shanks-saffron-and-cumin-part-i/

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/re...

[cassoulady]

I love this recipe, though it is more of a spring time recipe, but who cares, just use whatever veggies you have that are fresh.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...
lamb shanks are one of those things that can impress a crowd but are quite simple to prepare, once you do the prep, you are just let them simmer away without much work. I make this with the larger israeli couscous with pignolis.

[fourunder]

Lamb Shanks braised with red wine... with or without tomatoes works best for me. For a twist, you can even try using beer. You can serve the shanks with risotto, potatoes, polenta, lentils/beans, and or even noodles with the sauce created.

Here a basic recipe for an Italian version....

http://www.cook-italian.com/weblog/20...