This is a classic dish worthy of any restaurant but you can do it at home. Slow cooking in a slow oven with wine, stock and vegetables is needed to get the shanks to the falling-off-the- bone stage.

This rich and flavoursome dish would go very well with a well flavoured Petit Verdot.

This recipe serves 10, scale it up or down to suit your number of guests.

You need:
10 lamb shanks
50 mls oil
50 grams butter
Half cup grams carrot, peeled and chopped
Half cup grams onion, finely chopped
Half cup celery, chopped
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 tin crushed tomatoes
4 cloves garlic
Half bottle of red wine
4 cups water or vegetable stock
2 tablespoons of flour

Method:
Brown the shanks on all sides in oil in a frying pan. Seal on all sides. Transfer the shanks to a baking tray with a lid.

In the same frying pan saute the finely chopped vegetables and the crushed garlic for a few minutes. Add the butter to the pan then sprinkle over the flour. Stir thoroughly to absorb the flour.

Deglaze the pan with the red wine; stir to remove any lumps of flour in the mixture. Add the tomatoes and bring to the boil, stirring occasionally. Pour the boiled liquid over the lamb shanks and stir.

At this stage, you could add two or three bay leaves to the lamb shanks; for a bit of extra flavour, you could try adding a cinnamon stick.

Cover the baking tray with baking paper and then foil and then cover with some aluminium foil. Place in an oven preheated to 160 degrees Celsius and cook for one and a half hours. Remove the cover for the last half hour or so.

Remove from the oven and extract the shanks; correct the seasoning of the liquid if required.

Pour the sauce over the shanks and serve with some creamed polenta or mashed potato and green vegetable.

Wine Suggestion:
This dish needs a full flavoured red. My suggestion is Petit Verdot.

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