Lamb Shanks Orzo Recipes

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!

BAKED LAMB AND ORZO (ARNI YOUVETSI)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Rub the lamb with olive oil and sprinkle very liberally with salt and pepper. Sear the lamb in a heavy bottomed skillet. Transfer to a casserole dish.
• Add a little olive oil to the skillet, then add the onions. Cook until tender, then stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook until they start to become incorporated with the onions. Add the diced tomatoes and broth and bring to a boil; season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the liquid to the lamb casserole. Cover it and bake until the lamb is very tender, about 2 hours 30 minutes.
• Add the orzo and stir. Add some hot water if it starts to look dry and continue to bake, uncovered, until the orzo is cooked, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Serve pieces of the lamb alongside the orzo and top generously with your choice of cheese.

"GREEK" LAMB WITH ORZO

Steps:

• In a good sized Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pan, heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat until it is shimmering. Add the lamb and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a good grinding of black pepper. Cook, stirring to break it apart, until it is nicely browned. Remove the lamb with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate, reserving 2 tablespoons of the fat.
• Return the pot to the stovetop and add olive oil and the onion (still over medium-high). Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened and golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic. Stir in the spices (cinnamon, oregano, cumin, coriander, and red pepper)and cook until they start smelling toasted and fragrant (1 to 2 minutes). Stir in the whole tomatoes, crushed by hand. Cook the crushed tomatoes in the spices, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Then, add the can of diced tomatoes and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
• Add the cooked lamb back to the pot, give it a good stir, then cover the pot and leave it to cook, stirring from time to time, for 20 minutes. At this point, stir in the fresh spinach and cook just a couple more minutes until the spinach is wilted. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste (keeping in mind you'll be sprinkling a touch of feta and olives on, which will add to the saltiness). While the lamb and tomatoes are simmering together and marrying their flavors, bring a large pot of well-salted water (it should taste like sea water) to a boil. Add the orzo and cook until al dente, about 7 or 8 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water.
• Drain the orzo. Toss the orzo with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the lemon juice, and all of the parsley, adding a bit of pasta water at a time, if you feel it needs additional liquid.Spread the orzo out on an enormous serving platter. Spoon the lamb and sauce all over the top, then sprinkle with the feta and chopped olives. A good red wine, on the dry side, is a highly recommended companion here.

OVEN ROASTED LAMB SHANKS WITH ROASTED TOMATOES AND TOASTED ORZO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat oil in a medium Dutch oven over high heat until smoking. Season the shanks on both sides with salt and pepper and sear until golden brown on both sides. Remove shanks to a plate. Add the celery, carrots, and onions and cook until caramelized. Add the Port and red wine and reduce by half. Add the chicken stock, the pulp from the roasted garlic, and return the shanks; bring to a boil on the stove, and then cover and bake in the oven for 2 hours or until tender. Remove shanks, strain sauce into a medium saucepan, and reserve 1 cup of the braising liquid for cooking the orzo. Cook the sauce over high heat until liquid is reduced by half. Serve shanks with sauce, orzo, and tomatoes.
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place garlic heads in a small roasting dish and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for about 1 1/2 hours or until soft. Let cool before squeezing the pulp out.
• Bring 8 cups of water (or a combination of chicken stock and water) to a boil. Heat a medium nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 of the orzo and toast until golden brown. In a medium saucepan, heat the butter and oil over medium heat, then add the onion and cook until soft. Add the toasted orzo and the remaining orzo and saute for 1 minute to coat the pasta with the onion mixture. Add hot water to the orzo as if you were making risotto, a little at a time, until the pasta is al dente. Finish with the cold butter and 1 cup of the braising liquid. Stir in parsley and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. In a small baking dish, toss the tomatoes in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 4 hours. Alternatively, use re-hydrated sun-dried tomatoes instead.

OVEN ROASTED LAMB SHANKS WITH ROASTED TOMATOES AND TOASTED ORZO

Steps:

• For the roasted garlic bulbs:
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place garlic heads in a small roasting dish and drizzle each half with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until soft. Let cool slightly and squeeze the cloves of garlic into a small bowl.
• For the lamb shanks:
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven until smoking. Season the shanks on both sides with salt and pepper and sear until golden brown on both sides, remove to a plate. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the fat in the pan and add the celery, carrots and onions and cook until caramelized.
• Add the port and red wine and cook until almost completely reduced. Add the chicken stock, thyme, parsley sprigs and shanks and salt and pepper and bring to a boil on the stove, cover, transfer to the oven and bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until the meat is tender.
• Remove shanks to a plate and loosely tent with foil to keep warm. Strain the cooking liquid into a medium saucepan and discard the solids Whisk in the roasted garlic and cook over high heat, whisking occasionally, until reduced by half, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove 1 cup of the liquid to use for the orzo and continue reducing the remaining liquid by half again or until thickened to a glaze. Serve the lamb on top of the orzo and drizzle the shanks with the reduced cooking liquid, oven roasted tomatoes and chopped parsley.
• For the orzo pasta:
• Heat a medium nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 of the orzo and toast until golden brown.
• In a medium saucepan, heat the oil and 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat, add the onion and cook until soft. Add the toasted orzo and the remaining orzo and saute for 1 minute to coat the pasta with the oil/onion mixture. Bring 8 cups of water or chicken stock to a boil in a medium pot (or a combination of chicken stock and water) and add hot water/stock to the orzo as if you were making risotto, 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly until the liquid is absorbed and the pasta is al dente (you may not need to use all of the water). Stir in the cold butter and a 1 cup of the braising liquid, chopped parsley and salt and pepper to taste and cook 1 minute longer.
• For the slow roasted tomatoes:
• Toss the tomatoes in olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast in a 200 degree F oven for 6 hours.
• Make extra roasted heads to use for garnish on the plate, if desired .

LAMB SHANKS WITH ORZO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large roasting pan drizzle oil and add onions. Place lamb shanks in pan. Cover with tin foil and roast for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and add tomatoes, oregano, a dash of salt and pepper. Toss ingredients to combine. Cover and roast for another 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Add orzo and heated stock. Cover and roast for another 20 minutes. Serve hot.

GREEK LAMB WITH ORZO

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Cut the lamb into 4cm chunks, then spread over the base of a large, wide casserole dish. Add the onions, oregano, cinnamon sticks, ground cinnamon and olive oil, then stir well. Bake, uncovered, for 45 mins, stirring halfway.
• Pour over the chopped tomatoes and stock, cover tightly, then return to the oven for 1½ hrs, until the lamb is very tender.
• Remove the cinnamon sticks, then stir in the orzo. Cover again, then cook for a further 20 mins, stirring halfway through. The orzo should be cooked and the sauce thickened. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan and serve with crusty bread.

SPINACH, LAMB AND ORZO SOUP

Steps:

• Bring water and chicken broth to boil in heavy large saucepan or Dutch oven over high heat. Add lamb shanks, carrot, chopped onion, celery and bay leaf and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until lamb is tender, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Transfer lamb to plate and cool slightly. Remove meat from bone and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Strain cooking liquid and reserve.
• In same pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add sliced onion and sauté until tender, about 6 minutes. Add reserved cooking liquid, lamb meat and orzo. Cook soup over medium heat until orzo is tender but still firm to bite, about 20 minutes. Add spinach to soup and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. (Soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring soup to simmer before serving.) Ladle soup into bowls. Serve, passing grated Parmesan cheese separately.

GREEK LAMB AND ORZO

Steps:

• Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the lamb, and cook until browned and no longer pink, breaking up into crumbles, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, celery, orzo, salt, cayenne pepper, and garlic. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the orzo is tender and has absorbed the liquid from the tomatoes, about 12 minutes.