Braised Lamb Shanks

Season the lamb shanks all over with salt and fresh black pepper, and quickly brown in a tablespoonful of olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Put the lamb shanks into an ovenproof casserole.

Peel and finely chop a large shallot, top and tail a red pimento and finely chop, peel the garlic cloves and finely chop, and add to the casserole. Tie up some rosemary and thyme and add to the casserole. Pour over the red wine until the shanks are two thirds covered.

Put three or four tomatoes into some boiling water, peel them and cut into quarters. Remove all the pips, pour the liquid etc. through a sieve into the casserole along with the tomatoes.

Season the casserole contents likely with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Heat the casserole to simmering over a medium heat, cover and put in the oven at 325°F/170°C/Reg3 for two hours turning the shanks after an hour.

Meanwhile scrape the carrots, cut into quarters lengthwise and then in half. Put into an ovenproof dish, sprinkle over some olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Scrape the potatoes, cut into halves and put in a saucepan of water seasoned with some salt. Trim the broccoli shoots and put into a steamer.

About 25 minutes to go, put the carrots in the oven at 400°F/200°C/Reg6 and cook for about 20 minutes until just tender. Boil the potatoes until just cooked, drain well, put back in the saucepan with a couple of tablespoonfuls of olive oil, crush with a knife and season with salt. Put the broccoli on to steam.

Take the shanks out of the casserole, remove the bone and keep warm under some foil. Drain the cooking liquid through a gravy separator back into the casserole. Add the drained pimento etc. to the liquid. Mix some of the liquid with a good tablespoonful of cornflour, re-add to the liquid and thicken over a medium heat.

Put the vegetables on to serving plates, put the meat on top and pour over some of the gravy. Serve and enjoy  Zoom  .