Amazing that dishes like the slow-cooked, port-braised lamb shank served in fine dining restaurants are actually made with a handful of everyday ingredients!
Red Wine Sauce Paired with classic lamb shanks slow-cooked in the ham, this recipe isn’t complicated…just patience to let them slow-cook. High-end restaurant ingredients are cheap!
Port Braised Lamb Shanks
I consider myself to be a pretty lighthearted chef, but regular readers know I have a few issues: one is pretty pictures of tasteless recipes. Another is recipes that require the use of expensive wines for cooking.
I love wine. And when I buy expensive wine, I want to drink it clean. 3 hours uncooked.
And I assure you that the finest restaurant critics would have a hard time telling the difference if they taste-tested these port-braised lamb shanks with expensive or cheap bottles of port. (And the New York Times agrees…)
There’s no denying that using a $50 bottle of port instead of a $10 bottle makes a difference. But the difference isn’t worth $40. i promise. These port braised lamb shanks taste very expensive, so you can tell your guests you used vintage 1980s port and they will believe you!
I truly believe that slow cooking can be amazingly effective, even with the simplest ingredients, and this is a spectacular example of that. My Italian Beef Ragu and Irish Beef Stew are no different.
And this leg of lamb braised in port wine is at the forefront. See this source. Glossy, rich, and flavorful.
Cooking Lamb Shanks
Lamb shank is one of my favorite slow cooking cuts. Cooking meat on the bone is the best way to slow-cook meat that: B. Served with slow cooked beef ribs and osso his buco. The meat is juicy and delicious, no doubt!
Lamb shank is a tough meat and should be cooked slowly until it melts. The cheaper and harder the part, the better. Lamb shank is no exception.
No need to prepare a knife. The meat is so tender that you need a fork. Or a spoon.
I made it in a dutch oven, but you can also make it in a slow cooker or oven.
When it’s fun, slow-cooked dishes like this are my go-to. They taste great that day, but they taste even better the next day, and the day after!
I love port braised lamb shanks with creamy mashed potatoes. I tried the cauliflower and polenta mashed potatoes and I don’t think it tastes as good as the old fashioned mashed potatoes.
