Grass Fed Lamb Shanks Casseroled in Rich Red Wine & Herbs

Grass Fed Lamb Shanks Casseroled in Rich Red Wine & Herbs

Grass fed lamb shanks, slow cooked in red wine, crushed tomatoes and herbs of rosemary, thyme and bay leaves make for a fabulous winter meal.  They’re tried and true flavour combinations and there’s a reason why – they just work beautifully together!

Our lamb shank packs have one hind shank and one fore leg shank, hence one is larger than the other.  (The other two shanks from the animal are with the shoulder roast and the easy carve leg roast in our Whole Lamb Hamper).  The two shanks are quite a sizeable amount of lamb and we find it serves four of us.  Of course it depends how hungry you are! Once cooked, the lamb will fall from the bone and it is easy to share amongst more than two people.

Ingredients

  • 1 pack lamb shanks
  • olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 2 sticks celery, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 2 cups red wine
  • 700g crushed tinned tomatoes
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1 stalk rosemary
  • 5 stalks thyme
  • Flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Preheat oven to 180oC.

Heat a pan to medium high and add some olive oil.  Place the shanks in and brown on all sides.  Remove from the pan and place into a casserole dish ready for placing in the oven once the other ingredients are prepped.

Reduce the heat to medium, add some more olive oil followed by the onion and cook for a few minutes. Add the carrot, celery and garlic and cook until they begin to soften and the onion is softened too.

Before adding tinned tomatoes, I like to stick blend most of them into a sauce first, but you can also leave them whole – either way is fine.

Add the red wine, chicken stock, crushed tinned tomatoes (or sauced tomato), bay leaves, thyme and rosemary.  Once this mixture has heated in the pan to a simmer, place it all in on top of the shanks in the casserole dish.  Season with salt and pepper and place the lid on.

Place the casserole dish in the oven for 2 hours.  Remove and check if the shanks need turning after 1 hour.

After 2 hours, check the shanks are quite tender, and if so, remove the lid and and cook for another 30 minutes.  (Cook for longer with the lid on if more tenderness is required).

Once cooked, remove rosemary and thyme stalks.  Serve alongside creamy mashed potato and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley leaves.

If you’d like the added benefit of grass fed, chemical free lamb to get the best nourishment from this lovely rich, herbed Lamb Shank Casserole you can see our lamb hamper options here.

Happy cooking, Kirrily 🙂