Garlicky Braised Lamb Shanks with Sweet Peppers (F&W Cook-Through)
I really wanted to love this. I thought I was going to be over the moon about it. The kitchen smelled so good while it was cooking. My husband even said it smelled like his grandmothers kitchen when he walked in. Not surprising, since slow braised, bone-in meat things used to be much more a part of our family table than they are today. Much of their removal is due to the sheer time it takes. We’re all looking for fast meals on busy nights, and we’re missing out on those slow-cooked, bone-sticking, rich and comforting dishes that are so perfect for winter nights.
As you can tell - my my poetic droning on, I was excited for this one. I’ll start off by saying that it was fine. We did both really prefer the Sausage and Mustard Pasta over it, though. Which for a big meat-eating duo is shocking. There are a few things, though that I think would have made it better:
There are a few inconsistencies between the recipe, and the accompanying video on the Food & Wine Website:
The recipe calls for use of a large, ovenproof Dutch oven. I have that. The video, however, shows them using more of a casserole pot that’s more specific to braising. This is a major difference, in my opinion, and I suspect had a big impact on the final outcome. I think that a standard Dutch oven (which I used), is too tall, and not wide enough, for this to really work. You need a good amount of space for four lamb shanks to fit with room to really brown well. Otherwise, the surface area gets too cool due to contact with the meat and they end up steaming more than browning. The high walls create a similar problem. In a shallow casserole/braising pan, there’s much more room for steam to escape than in a Dutch oven since the liquid has more surface area. The liquid reduce better, caramelizes better, and created a richer sauce. If you were to make this, I high recommend using a braising pan/casserole pan as is shown in the video as opposed to a Dutch oven which is noted in the written recipe.
It seems a step is entirely left out of the written recipe that is shown in the video. After you add in the sliced bell peppers, the written instructions simply say to cook over medium-low heat. This is in contrast to the video, where the lamb shanks and peppers are covered, and then simmered over medium-low heat. Covered vs uncovered is a BIG difference in terms of the peppers steaming and softening, as well as the lamb getting a final 10 minutes of braising action.
My last issue with this recipe is in the active vs total time. Total time is noted as 3 hours and 10 minutes, with active time at only 1 hour 10. This, to me, means that I should only have to be actually doing stuff for 70 minutes - the remainder is hands-off cooking time. I would say that the reality of this recipe is more like 2 hours 35 min active, with a 3 hour total. The big not so fast that I saw is with the 2 hours that the shanks are braising. Yes, it’s two hours of braising - BUT here’s the catch: the recipe also says that you should be turning the shanks every 20 minutes during that time. This, to me, is active time. I have to be there for the full two hours of braising so that I can turn the damn shanks. Not a big deal, but if your plan was to put them in the oven to braise, and then run 90 minutes of errands - this throws a wrench into that plan. Sure, you don’t HAVE to turn them - but I’m tryna do this shit by the book.
We had this with garlic mashed potatoes, and we did enjoy it - but it definitely wasn’t a bring down the house situation like the pasta and like the next recipe - Poulet au Vinaigre - were. I might try this again, but definitely with a braising pan instead of that Dutch oven. I might even go based off of the video, and loose the written recipe all-together! I think this is a recipe you may have to do a few times to really get right, and go less off of recipe specifics and more on kitchen gut and instinct.
Up next: Deep-Dish Cinnamon Apple Pie, and Poulet au Vinaigre