Braised Lamb Shanks With White Beans
- Total Time
- 2½ to 3 hours, overnight marinating
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 4lamb shanks
- 6garlic cloves, cut into slivers
- 1tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves (or one teaspoon dried)
- 3tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½pound Great Northern beans
- Water to cover
- 3medium-size onions, peeled
- Herb bouquet (thyme, parsley and bay leaf tied in a cheesecloth bag)
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 3carrots, sliced
- 1½cups dry white wine
- 1½cups chicken or meat stock
- ⅓cup diced salt pork
- ¾cup fresh bread crumbs
- 2tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2tablespoons parsley, chopped
Preparation
- Step 1
Make small incisions in the lamb shanks and stud them with the slivers of garlic. Sprinkle the lamb with the rosemary. Coat the shanks with two tablespoons of the olive oil, cover, and marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Soak the beans overnight in cold water to cover.
- Step 2
Rinse the beans, put them in a large saucepan and cover them with fresh water. Add an onion, chopped, the herb bouquet, and salt and pepper. Simmer for about an hour, or until the beans are tender.
- Step 3
Heat remaining olive oil in a large pan and brown the lamb shanks on all sides. Remove the shanks and pour off the fat.
- Step 4
Chop the remaining onions and add them to the pan. Cook gently until the onions are soft. Add the carrots, wine, lamb shanks and stock. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for an hour.
- Step 5
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Step 6
Drain beans, reserving cooking liquid. In a large casserole, put a layer of beans, a layer of salt pork, the vegetables and the juice from the shanks and then the shanks. Add remaining beans and juices. If the stew is too dry, add some of the liquid from the beans. Bake one hour.
- Step 7
Sprinkle with bread crumbs and butter and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes longer. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.
Private Notes
Comments
flageolet or Marcella cannelloni beans are the beans of choice for lamb shanks. Get them at Rancho Gordo
Yum. We really enjoyed this dish. I thought it was leaning a bit towards cassoulet, so I put the diced salt pork in a blender with a couple of spoonfuls of broth, blended and stirred into the pan. Got the flavor with the chunks of fat. This seems to be a very adaptable recipe.
The bean in particular were delicious. I'd rub more salt on the lamb shanks next time and cook the lamb shanks longer. I could only find fore shanks which might have taken longer than shorter shanks. Definitely partially cover the lamb as it braises on the stove. Could have used more liquid in the braising. I added an extra cup of wine and an extra cup of stock.
This recipe has one BIG omission . It doesn’t instruct you to cover the casserole for the 1st hour of being in the oven. I ruined super expensive organic lamb shanks because of this and I’m extremely upset.
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