Braised Lamb Shanks (or even better Venison Shanks)

Braised Lamb Shanks (or even better Venison Shanks)

  • 1 Packet Telegraph Hill Marbella Sauce
  • 4 Lamb or Venison shanks (if you are using venison shanks you might have to get your butcher or friendly hunter to cut them in half for you so they fit in the cooking dish)
  • Telegraph Hill Roast Garlic Oil
  • Plain Flour
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbls Tomato paste
  1.  Combine flour, salt and pepper
  2. Dust the shanks in flour, the easiest way to do this is put a few tablespoons of flour in a plastic bag, add the shanks one at a time and lightly shake until completely coated.
  3. Heat the olive oil until hot in a heavy based frying pan
  4. Add the shanks to the pan and sear on all sides until well browned.
  5. Transfer the shanks to the slow cooker or oven proof dish
  6. Add the tomato paste to the frying pan and stir continuously for 1min
  7. Add the Marbella sauce and stir
  8. Pour the sauce into the cooking dish, taking care to scrape all the crispy bits out of the pan
  9. Braise in the oven in an oven proof dish with lid for 2 ½ - 3 hours or cook in a crockpot/slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours
  • To serve remove the shanks from the sauce. The sauce can be thickened by reducing it in a sauce pan or by bringing it to the boil and adding a cornflour/water mix. Whether or not the sauce will need to be thickened will depend on personal preference and how you are cooking the shanks

When asking my dad one day recently how he would like a lamb I was butchering for him cut up he replied “I really like the lamb shanks…” While I can appreciate the sentiment I still haven’t managed to figure out how to get more than four shanks off a lamb or venison so they remain a favourite due in part to their scarcity in our household but mostly due to their rich flavour.

This recipe goes great with mash, either potato or kumara, and almost nothing is better on a cold winters day