Braised Lamb Shanks

One afternoon I was feeling like cooking something earthy. It was a stormy day and something slow cooked just felt right. It happened to be the first day of Autumn and it felt as though it could have been dead in the middle. Here is what I did. Sorry I didn’t get a pic of this one.

4 Lamb Shanks, my butcher scored them, great idea
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 large carrots, roughly chopped
2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 cup of red wine
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme, a couple sprigs of fresh
1 tsp dried rosemary, or one spring of rosemary
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp tomato paste
2 cups chicken stock, optional

Season and brown the shanks in a heavy bottom Dutch Oven. Meanwhile, toss all the vegetables in the food processor and chop fine. Remove the browned meat to another dish. Add the vegetables and cook a few minutes to soften without browning. Add the wine and deglaze the pan. Return the meat to the pot along with the herbs and tomato paste. Add a couple cups of chicken stock to the pan then top off with water to cover the meat.

Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 2 hours.