Braised Lamb Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Coat a large Dutch oven generously with olive oil and bring to a high heat. Season the shanks generously with salt and add them to the pan. Brown well on all sides. This is an incredibly important step; do not rush it.
• Meanwhile, puree the onions, carrots, celery and garlic in a food processor until it becomes a coarse paste. Remove and set aside.
• Remove the shanks from the pan to a sheet tray. Discard the excess fat from the pan. Add a little more oil to coat the bottom of the pan and add the pureed veggies. Season with salt, to taste. Saute the veggies until they are very brown and aromatic, about 20 minutes. The brown veggies should form a sort of crust on the bottom of the pan, do not let this burn; it is where a lot of the flavor is! Don't rush this step either, since this is where you will develop the brown color and flavor.
• Add the tomato paste and brown for 5 minutes. Stir in the wine, chopped rosemary and thyme bundle. Stir frequently and cook until the wine has reduced by about half.
• Add the shanks back to the pot and pour in 3 to 4 cups of water. The shanks should be submersed, if they are not, add more water. Add the bay leaves to the pan, cover and put in the preheated oven. The cooking time will be about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Turn the shanks over about halfway through the cooking time. Check the shanks every 45 minutes or so. If the liquid has reduced too much add more water. Defat as you go.
• Remove the lid during the last 30 minutes of cooking time for maximum browning. When the shanks are done the meat should be incredibly tender and flavorful. Transfer to serving plates and garnish with Gremolata. Serve with Hard Polenta Cakes, if desired,
• Call yourself a superstar!!!
• In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and set aside until ready to use.

Steps:

• Sprinkle shanks with salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook shanks until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer shanks to plate.
• Add onions, carrots and garlic to pot and saute until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine, tomatoes, chicken broth and beef broth. Season with rosemary and thyme. Return shanks to pot, pressing down to submerge. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover, and simmer until meat is tender, about 2 hours.
• Remove cover from pot. Simmer about 20 minutes longer. Transfer shanks to platter, place in a warm oven. Boil juices in pot until thickened, about 15 minutes. Spoon over shanks.

Steps:

• Toss lamb chunks in seasoned flour, then shake off excess.
• Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a pan and fry lamb chunks all over to brown. Do this in batches. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to a flameproof casserole.
• Add 2 tbsp more olive oil to the pan and fry onion to soften but not brown. Add to lamb. Next add carrots and celery and lightly brown. Add to lamb with garlic. Pour over stock and wine and bring to bubbling. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Turn down to simmer, then cook over lowest heat for around 1 ¼ hours, or until lamb is tender. Sprinkle with parsley.
• Meanwhile, cook potatoes in lightly salted boiling water until soft to the point of a knife. Mash with extra virgin olive oil and egg to fabulous creaminess. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Briefly toss spinach in a pan with a little salted water to wilt. Drain.
• Serve lamb with mash and spinach on the side. Drizzle mash with more extra virgin olive oil.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Pour the oil in a casserole dish or roasting tray large enough to fit all the shanks. With the pan set over a high heat on the hob, spend a good 10 mins browning the lamb all over.
• Remove the lamb, add the onion and carrot and cook for 10 mins until starting to brown. Stir in the herbs and garlic and cook for a few mins more. Stir in the flour and tomato purée, season well then pour over the wine and stock.
• Return the lamb shanks to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid or tightly with foil and cook in the oven, undisturbed, for 1½-2 hrs until lamb is tender. Remove the lamb from the sauce and set aside.
• Put pan back on the hob and bubble the sauce down for about 15 mins until rich and glossy. Pass through a sieve into a jug. The lamb and sauce can be stored in the fridge for two days or frozen for one month. To serve, reheat the lamb in the sauce, adding a splash of water if the sauce is too thick.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Season lamb all over with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Add lamb shoulder, and cook, turning occasionally, until lamb is browned all over, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove lamb; set aside. Pour out any excess oil, and discard. Add remaining tablespoon oil and heat over medium-high heat. Stir in garlic, celery, carrot, onion, herbs, nutmeg, and cloves. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 1 minute. Return lamb to Dutch oven. Add wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, cover, and transfer to the oven. Cook until fork-tender, 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
• Remove from oven. Transfer lamb to a platter, and keep warm. Make sauce: Place the Dutch oven over low heat, and cook the liquid until it has reduced and thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove twine from lamb, and slice; serve with sauce.

Steps:

• Cut the leg of lamb into 4 even pieces.
• Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil in an 8-quart stovetop pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the lamb pieces and bones all over with salt and pepper. Working in batches (to not overcrowd the pot), sear the meat and bones in the hot oil until well browned on all sides. Remove from the pot and set aside. Pour off excess oil from the pot and then add the garlic, fennel, jalapenos, onions and red bell peppers. Sweat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomato paste; cook for 2 minutes. Deglaze with the beef stock and balsamic vinegar. Add the seared lamb and bones back the pot, close the pressure cooker and cook on low heat until fork tender, 45 minutes.
• Remove the lamb from the braising liquid and pull into large chunks. Remove the bones from the pot, and discard. Strain the braising liquid and then add it back to the pot. Cook over medium heat until the liquid is reduced by half. Turn off the heat, add the lamb back to the pot and spoon the reduced liquid over the top to glaze. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Steps:

• Using a sharp knife, trim the skin and as much fat as possible from the lamb. Smear lightly with olive oil and season. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a very large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Brown the lamb thoroughly on all sides, turning it with a big pair of tongs, then put it in a large, but fairly snug-fitting, casserole (a 4.8 litre/8 pint oval one is ideal). Reserve the pan.
• Slit lengthways through the first two layers of the leek, remove leaves and wash them. Put the bay leaf, thyme and celery inside one leaf and wrap with the other, to enclose the contents. Tie this 'faggot' with kitchen string and set aside. Rinse the rest of the leek and slice finely.
• Put the reserved frying pan over a low-medium heat and melt the butter. Tip in the onion, carrot and sliced leek and cook gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently, until the vegetables have softened. Add them to the casserole, draining off any fat first. Reserve the pan.
• Preheat the oven to 150C/Gas 2/fan oven 130C. Break the garlic into cloves and place in a heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water and leave for 1 minute, then drain, run under cold water and peel: the best way is to place a clove on a chopping board, nick off the root end and, without lifting the blade, pull the clove away. This removes the first bit of skin and the rest should come away easily. Set the cloves aside.
• Discard any fat from the frying pan and put it over a very high heat. Pour in the wine, scrape up any bits from the bottom and boil furiously for 5 minutes. Pour the wine and stock into the casserole. Add the garlic cloves and leek faggot, making sure they are immersed - the lamb should be at least half-covered. Do not add salt.
• Cover the casserole and put it into the oven. Braise for 4 hours, reducing the temperature to 140C/Gas 1/fan oven 120C for the last 2 hours and turning the lamb every hour. Remove the lamb, put it on a heated dish, drape loosely with foil and keep warm for up to 30 minutes.
• Strain 1 litre/13⁄4 pints of the cooking juices into a pan and bring to the boil over a very high heat. Bubble madly for 8-10 minutes until the liquid has reduced by half. Meanwhile, tip the vegetable debris (but not the faggot) into a food processor and whizz to a smooth purée. Whisk this into the reduced liquid to make the sauce. Check the seasoning, then keep the sauce at a bare simmer until you are ready to serve.