Lamb shanks are a tough cut of meat, but can be used in gourmet cooking such as osso bucco or lamb shank soup. Recipes vary, with Middle Eastern and European versions, and can include ingredients such as chickpeas, beans, and wine. Gremolata and other herbs are common additions.
The shanks of a lamb are among the least valuable of the young sheep’s cuts of meat, consisting of the tops of the legs and the shoulder or rump portion. That doesn’t mean they aren’t used in gourmet cooking. Due to their toughness, some braise these shanks and create osso bucco by combining them with vegetables and an aromatic sauce. Others go further with similar ingredients by creating a lamb shank soup that has the same mission of knocking the meat off the bone.
Making lamb shank soup can be easier than making osso bucco, or it can take just as long. This depends on the recipe followed. One is from the Middle East, using a single pot of simmering onion broth. Another is more European, with a braise before being dipped in soup formulated with wine, animal broth and tomatoes.
To prepare the Persian style of lamb shank soup, called ab-goosht, a pot of onion broth is brought to a boil with salt, pepper, chickpeas, beans, lamb shanks, turmeric, and chopped onions and tomatoes. This concoction then simmers for two hours before peeled potato chunks enter for the final half hour of simmering. Some chefs debone lamb shanks before serving; others leave the bones for the diners to do with them as they please. The soup can be served thick or pureed.
Learning the European method of preparing this stew also means mastering the anti bucco. This lamb shank soup involves binding the meat to hold it on the bone, dry-rubbing it with salt and pepper, then lightly charring it over a fairly high heat. After the shanks are set aside, the heat is turned down to medium and the vegetables such as carrots, onions, celery and garlic go to the same pan until caramelized. Tomato puree, red or white wine, then the shanks and broth follow the vegetables in the pot for three hours of simmering, turning the shanks and stirring the broth sporadically.
Another common addition to this stew is a folder of gremolata, a herb medley of garlic, parsley, and lemon zest, which is removed before serving. The bag is then opened and used to garnish the bowls. Other common herbs are thyme, cloves, rosemary and bay leaves. The main difference between this stew and osso bucco is the amount of broth and wine that is used, making lamb shank soup more of an intensely flavorful lamb shank and vegetables, soaked in gravy.
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