Greek Style Braised Lamb Shanks Recipes

GREEK LAMB OR VENISON SHANK

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven or other heavy, lidded pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Salt the shanks, then brown them well on all sides except the one with the bone; this helps the shanks hold together better. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• When the shanks are nicely browned, remove them to a bowl. Add the carrots, onion and celery and sauté until slightly browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic cloves and cook another minute, stirring often. If you are cooking lamb shanks, leave the vegetables in. If you are cooking deer or other wild game shanks, remove the vegetables.
• Add the tomato paste, wine, thyme and oregano to the pot. Mix well, and once it thickens, add a cup of water and mix well. Add the venison shanks back in now, along with any juice that has accumulated in the bowl. Cover with more water by just a little, bring to a simmer and add salt to taste. Cover the pot and let this cook in the oven for 90 minutes.
• At this point, lamb shanks will be done. Deer shanks will still need some time, but you can add back the vegetables now. Keep cooking until the meat wants to fall off the bone, anywhere from another 30 minutes to another 2 hours. It's wild game, so you never know...
• When the meat is tender, remove it gently to an ovenproof pan, along with all the vegetables. Turn off the oven and set this pan in the oven to keep warm. Set the pot on a strong burner and boil down the braising liquid. This will take roughly 20 to 30 minutes, so now is a good moment to make rice or mashed potatoes.
• When the sauce has reduced and thickened a bit, turn off the heat. When it stops, bubbling, add the cold butter a tablespoon at a time, swirling until it disappears. Use this as your sauce for the shanks and vegetables. Top it all with fresh herbs and black pepper.

EASY BRAISED LAMB SHANKS RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a small bowl, add all the spice mix ingredients and mix to combine.
• Pat the lamb shanks dry and season with the spice mix on all sides.
• In a large Dutch oven pot like this one, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches, brown the lamb shanks on all sides (about 8 mins or so). Transfer the lamb shanks to a large tray or bowl for now. Carefully dispose of extra fat in a separate heat-safe bowl, and return the pot to heat.
• Now add the onions, celery, carrots and potatoes. Saute for 5-7 minutes on medium-high, or until the vegetables gain some color. Add red wine, scrape the pot of brown bits. Cook briefly so that the wine reduces a bit.
• Add the broth, tomatoes, cinnamon sticks, thyme, and rosemary. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper. Return lamb shanks back to the pot; press down to submerge. Boil for 10 minutes. Turn heat off.
• Cover the pot and transfer to the 350 degrees F-heated oven. Cook in the oven for 2 1/2 hours (It's a good idea to check periodically through cooking just in case you need to add a little more liquid. When the shanks finish cooking, the liquid will have reduced to about 1/3 of what it was when you started.)
• While the lamb shanks are cooking, prepare rice according to this recipe, or prepare 2-3 cups of orzo pasta according to package instructions.
• Serve the lamb shanks hot with a little of the veggies and braising sauce on top of rice or orzo pasta. You might also like to prepare a side salad like this 3-ingredient Mediterranean salad or Fattoush. Enjoy!

GREEK-STYLE BRAISED LAMB SHANKS RECIPE - (5/5)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Heat oil in large ovenproof pot (wide enough to hold lamb in single layer) over medium-high heat. Sprinkle lamb on all sides with salt and pepper. Add lamb to pot and sauté until brown, turning occasionally, about 10 minutes. Transfer lamb to plate. Add next 10 ingredients to pot. Sauté until vegetables brown, about 20 minutes. Mix in tomato paste. Add wine and all broth; boil until liquid is reduced by half, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Return lamb to pot, arranging in single layer; add any accumulated juices. Bring to boil. Place lamb in oven and cook uncovered until tender, basting and turning occasionally, about 2 hours. Transfer lamb to plate. Skim any fat from top of roasting liquid. Press all liquid and enough of vegetables through sieve set over large bowl to make sauce with gravy consistency. Return gravy to pot; add lamb. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated.) Rewarm lamb over low heat. Transfer to platter and serve. This recipe yields 6 servings.

BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

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.

BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place the onions in a layer in the bottom of a Dutch oven or medium roasting pan with a lid. Arrange the lamb shanks on top of the onions. Pour the wine, balsamic vinegar and olive oil over the lamb. Place a clove of pressed garlic next to each shank, and a quarter of a lemon on each side. Pour the tomatoes over everything, then season with salt, pepper and basil.
• Cover and place in the preheated oven. Cook for 3 hours. Use juices from the pan to make a nice flavorful gravy.

GARLIC LOVERS' GREEK LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Trim most visible fat from shanks.
• Cut slits 1/2" wide and deep all over shanks, as many as possible.
• Stuff garlic cloves into slits, lengthening or deepening them as needed.
• Drizzle or rub extra virgin olive oil over shanks, trying to get the oil into the slits with the garlic.
• (Recipe may be made in advance to this point. Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day) Put shanks in a broiler-safe pan (I use a low rack in a pyrex dish) and broil on both sides until meat sizzles and browns, about 6- 7 minutes per side.
• Remove shanks from oven, and turn it down to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Pour red wine over shanks, and distribute 1 T each mint and oregano over both sides of each shank.
• Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
• Cover pan with aluminum foil, return to oven, and bake for approximately 2 to 2 1/2 hours, basting every 40 minutes or so.
• When done, you can pour drippings into small pan and boil until slightly thickened while lamb rests, to serve alongside.

KLEFTIKO-STYLE LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Put the lamb shanks in a large bowl with the garlic, rosemary, thyme, dried oregano, cinnamon, bay leaves, lemon juice (drop in the juiced halves as well), and olive oil. Season well, then toss everything together. If you have time, chill overnight.
• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/ gas 5. Tip the potatoes and peppers into a large roasting tin, then pour over the wine. Remove the lamb from the marinade and set aside, then pour the leftover marinade over the veg. Toss to combine, then arrange the lamb on top of the veg. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 2 hrs 30 mins. Remove the lamb from the tin, turn all the veg over, then turn the lamb over and return to the tin on top of the veg. Drizzle over a little more oil, if the tin seems dry. Bake for 30 mins more, uncovered, until the lamb is falling off the bone and the potatoes are golden around the edges. Leave to rest for 5 mins, then scatter over the feta and fresh oregano, if using.

GREEK-STYLE LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• In a 8-quart Dutch oven, heat vegetable oil over medium-high heat, Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt on lamb shanks. Cook lamb shanks, 2 at a time, until browned on all sides. Remove shanks to a bowl as they brown.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In drippings in Dutch oven, cook onions and carrots until tender and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, cook 2 minutes.
• Return lamb shanks to Dutch oven. Add tomatoes with their juice, chicken broth, and 3/4 teaspoon salt; heat to boiling over high heat. Cover Dutch oven and bake 1 1/2 hours. Turn lamb shanks over; add potatoes and green beans. Cover and bake 1 1/4 hours longer or until lamb and potatoes are tender.
• Meanwhile, from lemons, grate 1 tablespoon peel and squeeze 2 tablespoons juice.
• When lamb shanks are done, skim fat from sauce. Stir in lemon peel, lemon juice, dill, and parsley.

BRAISED LAMB SHANKS WITH LEMON

Steps:

• Put oil in a large, deep skillet or casserole that can be covered later, and turn heat to medium-high. Add shanks, sprinkling them with salt and pepper. When pieces are deeply browned on one side, add thyme, garlic, onion, half the celery and half the carrots, and more salt and pepper to skillet. Continue to brown, stirring occasionally.
• Add wine, and let mixture bubble for about a minute; cover and adjust heat so that mixture simmers steadily. Cook for about an hour.
• Add remaining vegetables to pan; zest lemon, and add zest as well. Continue to cook until lamb is very tender and vegetables soft, another 30 to 45 minutes. (You can prepare dish up to this point in advance; let sit for a few hours, or cover and refrigerate for up to a day before reheating and proceeding.)
• When lamb is done, juice lemon, and add juice to sauce. Taste, adjust seasoning, and serve, garnished with parsley.