Braised Lamb Shanks

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
• 3 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 lamb shanks (about 250g each)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, trimmed and finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 400 g tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
• 200 ml dry red wine
• 200 ml port wine
• 1 liter beef stock

Directions

1. 1

   Preheat oven to 160°C.

2. 2

   Using a morter and pestle, roughly crush the cumin and coriander seeds until fragrant. Add salt and mix well.

3. 3

   Sprinkle over the lamb shanks and press on to coat.

4. 4

   In a large deep heavy based, oven proof dish, heat the oil over medium heat and brown the shanks well. Remove and set aside.

5. 5

   Place the onion, carrot and celery in the same dish and saute over medium heat until soft. Add the garlic, tomatoes and stir.

6. 6

   Pour in the wine and port, stir then add the beef stock. Bring to the boil then turn off the heat.

7. 7

   Return the lamb to the pan, cover with aluminium foil and place in the oven for 3 hours or until the meat almost falls off the bone.

8. 8

   Remove from the oven and lift out the shanks. Set aside and keep warm.

9. 9

   Skim as much fat as you can off the surface of the cooking liquid and return to the stove top over medium heat to simmer and reduce to a slightly syrupy consistency.

10. 10

    Serve with mashed potatoes or polenta.