The Art of Braising: A Step-by-Step Guide to Cooking Lamb Shank

When it comes to cooking lamb shank, few techniques can produce the same level of tenderness and flavor as braising. This ancient method involves cooking the meat in liquid on low heat for an extended period, allowing the connective tissues to break down and the flavors to meld together. In this article, we will delve into the world of braising and explore the secrets behind creating a mouth-wateringly tender lamb shank.

Marinating the Lamb

To start, it's essential to marinate the lamb shank in a mixture of red and green chilies, garlic, smoked paprika, dried oregano, cumin seeds, salt, pepper, and cinnamon. This blend of spices not only adds flavor but also helps to tenderize the meat. The key is to use ultra-fine chopped ingredients, as this will help them penetrate deeper into the meat. A good rule of thumb is to allow the lamb to marinate for at least half an hour, although overnight marinating can produce even better results.

Slicing Vegetables for Braising

When it comes to braising vegetables, it's crucial to slice them correctly. Thinly sliced onions, in particular, can burn easily and impart a bitter taste to the dish. Instead, we want to slice our vegetables into thicker pieces, allowing them to cook slowly and absorb all the flavors of the braising liquid. Carrots and onions are perfect candidates for this technique.

The Secret to Braising

So, what makes braising so effective? The secret lies in using a thick, durable pan that can distribute heat evenly and retain it well. This type of pan is essential for achieving the perfect browning on the lamb shank, which will then wash off as the dish cooks. To start, we add a touch of olive oil to the pan and sear the lamb shanks until they're nicely browned. This initial step sets the tone for the rest of the cooking process.

The Braising Liquid

After searing the lamb, we add red wine to the pan, which serves several purposes. Firstly, it helps to deglaze the bottom of the pan, releasing all the flavorful particles that have stuck to it during the cooking process. This is known as "glazing," and it's an essential step in creating a rich, savory sauce. We then bring the liquid to a boil and reduce it by half, creating a concentrated stock that will add depth to our final dish.

The Cooking Process

Now that we have our braising liquid, it's time to cook the lamb shank. This is where the magic happens, as the low heat of 160°F (71°C) allows the meat to transform and become incredibly tender. We cover the pan with a lid, which traps all the flavorful goodness inside, but be careful not to overdo it – this can result in the flavors washing away.

The Final Touches

After three hours of slow cooking, our lamb shank is finally ready. To finish it off, we whisk in some fresh mint leaves, which add a bright, refreshing flavor to the dish. We then place the lamb on a serving plate and spoon some of the rich, savory sauce over the top. The result is a tender, flavorful piece of lamb that's sure to impress even the most discerning palates.

The Secret to Whisking

Finally, we come to the secret of whisking – or rather, not whisking. In this recipe, we're looking for a big, beautiful blue color in our sauce, which means we want to leave some of the larger particles intact. This is achieved by avoiding vigorous whisking, which can break down the emulsions and result in an unappealing texture. Instead, we simply whisk the ingredients together until they're well combined, allowing us to preserve the desired consistency.

And there you have it – a step-by-step guide to cooking lamb shank using the ancient art of braising. With its rich flavors, tender texture, and impressive presentation, this dish is sure to become a favorite in your household. So go ahead, give it a try, and experience the joy of slow-cooked lamb shank for yourself!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enmarinating the lamb first Cheers we'll use a mixture of red and green take off the tops and just slice in garlic don't worry about chopping these ultra fine just get it in there cooking up to three hours everything's got a blends and almost sort of cures itself together smoked paprika it goes brilliantly well with the chilies 2 teaspoons in a touch of dried oregano some little cumin seeds the blend and the fragrance so they give out is extraordinary they release a little oil as well helps to tenderize the lamb touch of salt pepper cinnamon that sort of sweetens up the lamb olive oil just a tablespoon and the olive all helps to sort of stick all those wonderful spices to the lamb jump in just start really rubbing at this stage you can leave the lamb to marinate for anything from half an hour to overnight allowing the spices to really penetrate the meat giving amazing results when you tuck in delicious vegetables carrots and onions and that's it sliced secret slicing vegetables for braising is not getting too thin you slice the onions too thin they burn you've got that horrible char taste on that slow braised braising it's just a chef's term that means cooking in liquid on a low heat making the meat incredibly moist and beautifully tender so the secret of braising is having a really nice thick durable pan get that nice and hot just a touch of olive oil lamin hold the bone you can control them into the pan on that white fats to start rendering so we'll have more fat therefore making it a lot more flavor some as it braises chilies cinnamon in mix that up and don't be scared you're not burning this you're sort of searing the lamb shanks and this is the important part right at the very beginning we're gonna be color on the lamb which washes off as it braises in the oven so be generous with that color vegetables in WoW and then cut the Bailey's so now you lift the lamb up and get the lamb sat on top of the vegetables now the blade the pan with red wine the glazing means that you're you cleaning the bottom of the pan and you're getting that amazing flavor washed off and lift it up into that sauce it can really transform that dish always it lays then bring to the boil and cook for about ten minutes to reduce the wines reduce down by half now that the stock bring that stock back up to the ball and then into the oven now don't cover it when you cover it all the conversation comes off the lid your lamb becomes gray all this effort and that exciting spice gets washed away no lid and in the oven for three hours a slow cook on a low heat of a hundred and sixty degrees gives us Pisces time to work and transform the meat so it's mouth-wateringly tender now look at those out on to a plate you can just see that meat sliding down juicy and incredibly tender grab it by the shank roll them around that rich delicious sauce these sauce nice beautiful just get some mint don't chop it just pick that fresh mint and let it snow and there you go a very spicy delicious melting in the mouth lamb shank amazing now the secret whisking is a big beautiful blue and whisk the bigger the blue that we meet sliding down juicy and creamy tendermarinating the lamb first Cheers we'll use a mixture of red and green take off the tops and just slice in garlic don't worry about chopping these ultra fine just get it in there cooking up to three hours everything's got a blends and almost sort of cures itself together smoked paprika it goes brilliantly well with the chilies 2 teaspoons in a touch of dried oregano some little cumin seeds the blend and the fragrance so they give out is extraordinary they release a little oil as well helps to tenderize the lamb touch of salt pepper cinnamon that sort of sweetens up the lamb olive oil just a tablespoon and the olive all helps to sort of stick all those wonderful spices to the lamb jump in just start really rubbing at this stage you can leave the lamb to marinate for anything from half an hour to overnight allowing the spices to really penetrate the meat giving amazing results when you tuck in delicious vegetables carrots and onions and that's it sliced secret slicing vegetables for braising is not getting too thin you slice the onions too thin they burn you've got that horrible char taste on that slow braised braising it's just a chef's term that means cooking in liquid on a low heat making the meat incredibly moist and beautifully tender so the secret of braising is having a really nice thick durable pan get that nice and hot just a touch of olive oil lamin hold the bone you can control them into the pan on that white fats to start rendering so we'll have more fat therefore making it a lot more flavor some as it braises chilies cinnamon in mix that up and don't be scared you're not burning this you're sort of searing the lamb shanks and this is the important part right at the very beginning we're gonna be color on the lamb which washes off as it braises in the oven so be generous with that color vegetables in WoW and then cut the Bailey's so now you lift the lamb up and get the lamb sat on top of the vegetables now the blade the pan with red wine the glazing means that you're you cleaning the bottom of the pan and you're getting that amazing flavor washed off and lift it up into that sauce it can really transform that dish always it lays then bring to the boil and cook for about ten minutes to reduce the wines reduce down by half now that the stock bring that stock back up to the ball and then into the oven now don't cover it when you cover it all the conversation comes off the lid your lamb becomes gray all this effort and that exciting spice gets washed away no lid and in the oven for three hours a slow cook on a low heat of a hundred and sixty degrees gives us Pisces time to work and transform the meat so it's mouth-wateringly tender now look at those out on to a plate you can just see that meat sliding down juicy and incredibly tender grab it by the shank roll them around that rich delicious sauce these sauce nice beautiful just get some mint don't chop it just pick that fresh mint and let it snow and there you go a very spicy delicious melting in the mouth lamb shank amazing now the secret whisking is a big beautiful blue and whisk the bigger the blue that we meet sliding down juicy and creamy tender\n"