LAMB SHANK RECIPES OVEN RECIPES

Steps:

• 1. Preheat your oven to full whack. Put the dried chillies, raisins and apple juice in a bowl, then set aside.
  2. Put the lamb shanks in a roasting tray, then rub all over with oil, sea salt and black pepper. Bang them in the oven for 20 minutes.
  3. As they’re browning, peel and finely chop the onions, peel and finely slice the garlic, then halve and deseed the chillies.
  4. Get a casserole pan that will fit the shanks quite snugly — about 24cm in diameter and 10cm deep. Put it on a medium heat and add a lug of olive oil, the onions, garlic, fresh chilli, smoked paprika, bay leaves and rosemary. Leave to sweat for about 10 minutes.
  5. Once the onions have softened, put the rehydrated chillies and raisins into a food processor or liquidiser, along with any leftover apple juice, then blitz (feel free to sneak in a swig of red wine or bourbon here!) until you’ve got a paste. Stir this into your onions.
  6. Take your shanks out of the oven and turn the temperature down to 140°C/275°F/gas 1.
  7. Add the shanks to the casserole pan along with your tinned tomatoes and stock (if using) or equal amounts of water.
  8. Stir everything together, cover and put in the oven to stew for 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours, or until the meat is falling off the bone and the sauce is thick, topping up with water or stock as you go.
  9. Take it out of the oven, have a taste and season with salt and pepper and a dash of vinegar. Serve with steamed greens, mash, flatbreads, or whatever you fancy.

Steps:

• Tip the yogurt, cumin, turmeric, 1 tsp sea salt and the lamb shanks into a large mixing bowl, then mix to coat the lamb. Cover and pop in the fridge for a couple of hrs, or overnight if you have time.
• Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 4. Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish over a medium heat, add the shanks and brown all over for 10 mins, then remove from the dish. Scatter the onions into the dish and fry for 10 mins until golden brown. Stir in the curry powder, garlic and ginger and cook for 3 mins until aromatic. Add the lamb shanks back to the dish along with the tomatoes, chillies, curry leaves, cardamom pods and lime pickle. Give everything a good stir and pour over the stock. Bring up to a simmer, cover, then transfer to the oven and cook for 3 hrs.
• Remove the lid and cook for 1 hr more – this will help reduce some of the liquid and char any exposed meat. When the lamb is very tender, leave to rest for 30 mins or leave to cool completely and reheat the next day for the best flavour. Can be made up to two days in advance. Scatter with chopped mint and serve with naan bread and rice on the side.