Veal Ossobuco Recipes

OSSO BUCO

Steps:

• Place the rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and cloves into cheesecloth and secure with twine. This will be your bouquet garni.
• For the veal shanks, pat dry with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Veal shanks will brown better when they are dry. Secure the meat to the bone with the kitchen twine. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper. Dredge the shanks in flour, shaking off excess.
• In a large Dutch oven pot, heat vegetable oil until smoking. Add tied veal shanks to the hot pan and brown all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove browned shanks and reserve.
• In the same pot, add the onion, carrot and celery. Season with salt at this point to help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Saute until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Return browned shanks to the pan and add the white wine and reduce liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add the bouquet garni and 2 cups of the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pan and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Check every 15 minutes, turning shanks and adding more chicken stock as necessary. The level of cooking liquid should always be about 3/4 the way up the shank.
• Carefully remove the cooked shanks from the pot and place in decorative serving platter. Cut off the kitchen twine and discard.
• Remove and discard bouquet garni from the pot.
• Pour all the juices and sauce from the pot over the shanks. Garnish with chopped parsley and lemon zest.

OSSO BUCO (ITALIAN BRAISED VEAL SHANKS) RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Season veal shanks all over with salt and pepper. If you have butcher's twine, you can tie a length of it tightly around the circumference of each shank; this can help them hold their shape during cooking, but is not absolutely necessary.
• Add butter to Dutch oven, along with onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring, over medium-high heat until vegetables are softened and just starting to turn a light golden color, about 6 minutes.
• Prepare a parchment paper lid following these instructions . Cover shanks with parchment lid and transfer to oven. Cook for 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, for the Gremolata: In a small bowl, stir together parsley, lemon zest, and garlic. Set aside.
• Carefully transfer shanks to a platter. (Using a spatula and tongs together can help prevent them from falling apart.) Using a spoon, carefully scrape off any excess fat on surface of braising juices. The liquid should be saucy and thick; you can adjust the consistency by adding either water or stock to thin the sauce, or simmering it on the stovetop until more fully reduced. Discard thyme and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper if necessary.
• Remove twine from shanks, if used. Serve shanks on plates, spooning braising sauce on top and passing remaining gremolata at the table for diners to sprinkle as a garnish to their own taste; make sure to offer small spoons for scooping out marrow from bones. Osso buco is traditionally served with Risotto alla Milanese .

TRADITIONAL OSSO BUCO

Steps:

• Dust the veal shanks lightly with flour. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the veal, and cook until browned on the outside. Remove to a bowl, and keep warm. Add two cloves of crushed garlic and onion to the skillet; cook and stir until onion is tender. Return the veal to the pan and mix in the carrot and wine. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Pour in the tomatoes and beef stock, and season with salt and pepper. Cover, and simmer over low heat for 1 1/2 hours, basting the veal every 15 minutes or so. The meat should be tender, but not falling off the bone.
• In a small bowl, mix together the parsley, 1 clove of garlic and lemon zest. Sprinkle the gremolata over the veal just before serving.

VEAL OSSO BUCO

Steps:

• First season the meat with olive oil, salt and fresh ground black pepper, then in a smoking hot cast iron pan sear both sides of the shank. Remove the veal and set aside. Add in the mirepoix, garlic, anchovy and tomato paste, caramelize all the ingredients together, add the Barolo to the pan to deglaze. Add the veal stock to the pan and reduce by 1/4. When reduced, pour the simmering liquid over the 4 veal shanks in a roasting pan, add the diced tomato and parsley. Cover first with plastic wrap then with aluminum foil, place in a preheated 325 degree oven for 3 1/2 hours. Check for fork tenderness. Garnish with the gremolata and shaved, roasted parsnips and carrots. (Gremolata: chopped parsley, lemon zest, bread crumbs, anchovy) Reduce braising liquid by 1/4, season and pour over shanks.

OSSOBUCCO

Steps:

• Soak the porcini for at least 15 minutes in 200ml/7fl oz boiling water. Don't remove the membrane that holds the veal together, but trim off any obviously fatty or lumpy bits. Dust both sides of the meat with the seasoned flour.
• Heat the butter and oil in a very large flameproof sauté pan or casserole over a medium-high heat. When the sizzling stops, put in the veal and fry the slices for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Transfer the meat to a plate.
• Replace the pan over a low to medium heat and tip in the carrot and celery. Gently fry for 5 minutes until the vegetables have slightly softened, then raise the heat and pour in the wine. Bubble the wine furiously for 2 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat.
• Fish the softened porcini out of the soaking liquid, squeeze out the excess moisture and reserve it. Chop the porcini roughly and add to the sauté pan, together with the soaking liquid. Add the sugocasa or passata and stock, then stir.
• Put the veal back into the pan in a single layer, cover and bring to the boil. Immediately reduce the heat and simmer very gently for 2 hours, turning the veal slices halfway, until the meat is very soft. The liquid should reduce to a thickish sauce, but if it's still thin after 1¼ -1½ hours, half remove the lid to allow evaporation. Serve with the grain 'risotto' (see link, right).

VEAL OSSO BUCO

Steps:

• 1. Lay the veal shanks in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle liberally on both sides with salt. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• 2. Rinse the veal shanks of their salt and pat dry with paper towels. Wrap each veal shank once around the circumference so that it holds the bone and meat together in the center. Tie the twine with a good knot. Season the veal shanks with pepper.
• 3. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• 4. Heat a large, ovenproof casserole over high heat. Put the oil into the casserole and let it heat.
• 5. Meanwhile, put the flour in a shallow bowl, dredge the veal shanks in it, and pat off the excess. Brown the veal shanks in the hot oil for about 5 minutes on each side, or until browned on all sides. Remove from the pan and set aside. If the oil turns dark during the process, discard it and heat a fresh cup of oil.
• 6. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the pan and cook over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine, bring to a boil, and cook for about 2 minutes, or until reduced by half.
• 7. Add the stocks, tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf to the pan. Return the veal shanks to the pan and bring to a boil over high heat. Once the liquid boils, cover, transfer to the oven, and cook for 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is fork tender and falling off the bones.
• 8. Remove the herbs from the braising liquid and discard. Let the veal shanks come to room temperature in the braising liquid. Remove the veal shanks and set aside. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve or chinois into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until reduced by a quarter. Using a skimmer or large spoon, skim off any grease or foam that rises to the surface. Return the strained vegetables to the liquid and taste for seasoning.
• 9. To serve, cut and discard the twine, put a single osso buco (veal shank) in a bowl, and ladle about 3/4 cup of the sauce and vegetables over it. (If the sauce and the meat are not still warm, heat them together very gently over low heat for 8 to 10 minutes.)
• 10. Garnish each osso buco with the fresh horseradish, lemon zest, and chopped parsley and season with pepper.

OSSO BUCO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until very hot. Place flour in a shallow dish. Season veal shanks with salt and pepper; dredge in flour, shaking off excess. Working in batches if necessary, add shanks to Dutch oven (they should sizzle immediately). Cook, turning, until browned on all sides, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove veal shanks from Dutch oven and set aside.
• Add onion, carrots, celery, and leek to Dutch oven; cook, stirring, until softened and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add bay leaf, thyme, oregano, tomatoes, wine, and stock. Return veal shanks to Dutch oven and bring to a simmer. Cover and transfer to oven; cook, checking occasionally to make sure the liquid is still simmering, until meat is very tender, about 2 1/2 hours.
• Remove from oven and transfer shanks to a platter; cover with parchment paper-lined aluminum foil to keep warm. Place Dutch oven over medium heat; simmer until sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Return shanks to Dutch oven to heat through and coat with sauce. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and lemon zest; serve.