Moroccan Style Braised Lamb Shanks Food

BRAISED MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS WITH POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Let lamb come to room temp (unwrap on counter 20-30 mins) and season lamb generously with kosher salt.
• Heat oil in an extra large heavy bottomed Dutch oven. Working in batches, sear the lamb shanks on all sides over medium high (or medium) heat. Take your time here and do this well. Set the shanks aside. Drain the oil.
• Add the water to the same pan and bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits. Simmer 3-4 minutes. To the water, add onion, garlic, fennel, beet, orange peel, herbs and spices and salt to the pan and stir until vegetables soften, about 5 minutes. Add the wine, and gently simmer until alcohol cooks off, another 5 mintues. Add the pomegrantate juice, chicken stock and maple syrup, stir to combine. Bring to a simmer.
• nestle the lamb shanks down in the liquid,on their side, meaty side down, bring to a simmer on the stove, then cover well, and place in a 325 F for 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 hours or until meat is tender (internal temp 195-205F) Keep in mind that larger shanks will take longer to cook, smaller shanks, less time, so if in doubt, check at 1 1/2 hours- add more time if not tender. Basically, meat will get more tender as it braises, but you may need to add more broth or stock if using big shanks. So check liquid level.
• When shanks are tender, remove from pan, rest on a platter or baking dish in a warm spot like the stove top 20-30 minutes. While resting make the sauce.
• Make the sauce. Strain the braising liquid. If making ahead, you could let this cool in the fridge to allow more fat to separate (it will rise and harden) or skim off warm fat with a ladle. Place 1 1/2 cups, skimmed braising liquid in a small sauce pan and simmer, reducing just until it tastes flavorful. It really doesn't need to reduce until "thickened" (see notes) which may result in flavors getting too salty or condensed. Add a little splash of vinegar. Season it with salt and pepper. Sometimes I'll add a little squeeze of orange juice. Up to you.
• the lamb shanks on a platter, spoon the flavorful sauce over top, garnish with fresh pomegrante seeds and a few sprigs of rosemary.
• the lamb shank over the polenta or couscous, spoon the flavorful sauce overtop. Garnish with fresh pomegrate seeds. Fresh parsley is nice here or a sprig of rosemary, something green. ????

MOROCCAN HAROSETH-BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Add lamb shanks to marinade and toss to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Transfer to refrigerator and let marinate overnight.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Place carrots, onion, celery, fennel, garlic, and ginger in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Remove lamb from marinade and wipe off excess. Season with salt and pepper and add to roasting pan. Transfer to oven and roast, turning once, until well browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and deglaze lamb and vegetables with wine and tomato paste.
• Decrease oven temperature to 325 degrees.
• Transfer lamb to a large Dutch-oven and add enough chicken stock to cover the lamb shanks halfway (you may not need to use all of the chicken stock). Add roasted vegetables, apricots, figs, dates, prunes, currants, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, crushed tomatoes, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and chile flakes. Place thyme, parsley, cilantro, and bay leaves in a piece of cheesecloth; tie with kitchen twine to enclose. Add to Dutch oven and cover.
• Bring lamb mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Immediately transfer to oven and cook until meat is tender and falling off the bone, about 3 hours.
• Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Remove lamb shanks and set aside. Remove vegetable mixture and cooking liquid from Dutch-oven and pass through a food mill back into Dutch-oven. Return lamb to Dutch-oven and toss to coat; serve.

MOROCCAN-STYLE BRAISED BABY LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/gas 4.
• For the spice paste: Combine the saffron with the 2 teaspoons of boiling water, and leave to soak.
• Heat a small skillet over high heat, then dry-roast the fennel seeds, star anise, cardamom pods, cumin seeds, cinnamon and Sichuan peppercorns for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant. When the spices have cooled, remove the seeds from the cardamom pods, then place them with the dry-roasted seeds in an electric grinder, and grind until the mixture is finely ground. Set aside.
• In a suitable container, grind the chillies, garlic, ginger, cilantro stems and roots, turmeric and galangal with an electric stick-blender until you have a coarse paste. Lightly crush the peppercorns with a mortar and pestle or a heavy rolling pin, and add to the chilli/garlic mixture with the sea salt. Add the shallots, saffron strands with their soaking water, paprika, the reserved ground spices and the olive oil to this paste, and mix well to combine.
• Heat a heavy-based, medium-sized frying pan over high heat, then add the paste and cook, stirring regularly, for about 5 minutes or until fragrant. Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add the palm sugar and fish sauce, increase the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 2 minutes, or until mixture is slightly caramelised. Remove from stove and set aside.
• Brush a roasting tin with some olive oil and heat on the stove top. Season the lamb shanks with salt and white pepper, then add to the roasting pan and seal until lightly browned on all sides.
• Drain off any excess oil and increase the heat. Drizzle the prepared spice paste over lamb, and toss and stir the contents of the tin to ensure the shanks are well coated, and to seal in flavours. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, onions, dates, apricots and bay leaves, and stir to combine.
• Remove the tin from the stove, pour over stock and cover with foil. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 1 hour, or until lamb is very tender and well browned.
• When the meat is done, drizzle with lime juice and fish sauce before serving.
• Serve with cous cous, rice or crusty bread and a large green salad.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat some olive oil in a pan, cook lamb until browned all over, drain.
• In a large saucepan or casserole dish (depending on whether you want to cook on the stove or in the oven.)Add some more olive oil, cook onion and garlic until onion softens, add cinnamon, cumin and coriander, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered until liquid has reduced by about half (it doesn't have to be precise). Add chicken stock and honey, bring to the boil, and reduce heat again.
• Return lamb to the pan and either cook covered in a moderate slow oven (170c) for about 1hr 30 minutes or on a low heat on the stove for the same time. Uncover dish and add the kumara, cook covered again for a further 50Min's to 1 hr until lamb is falling of the bone.
• Remove lamb and kumara from dish cover with foil to keep warm. Strain liquid into another pan, mix a little water with the cornflour, bring the sauce to a boil over a high heat add cornflour and stir until mixture thickens.
• To Serve: I served mine over spiced couscous topped with kumara and lamb and then poured the sauce over.

MOROCCAN BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil, onion, chile, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add celery, carrot, cumin, coriander, oregano, cinnamon, star anise, and saffron. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until vegetables are soft and fragrant; season with salt and pepper.
• Add chicken stock, tomatoes, apricots, and olives; bring to a boil. Add lamb, making sure it is submerged halfway; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to oven and cook, rotating lamb every 30 minutes, until meat is evenly browned and falling off the bone, and sauce is thickened.

MROUZIA LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• Working in batches if needed, add the lamb shanks and cook until browned on each side, about 15 minutes. (Make sure that the oil is very hot before adding the meat; you should hear a sizzle when the meat touches the pan, otherwise it isn't hot enough.) The meat will be released naturally from the pan once browned on one side, so don't be tempted to turn it beforehand. Transfer the browned lamb shanks to a dish and set aside until ready to use.
• Reduce the heat under the pot to medium, add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the onion, garlic, ras el hanout, salt, cinnamon and saffron and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Return the lamb shanks to the pan, add the stock and bring to a boil over high heat. (The meat of the shanks should be mostly covered, but not necessarily fully submerged in the stock.) Cover the pan, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the meat is fully cooked and fork tender, about 2 hours, depending on the size of your shanks. If it looks like there isn't enough liquid in the pan and the tagine is drying out at any point during the cooking process, add a couple tablespoons of water.
• Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400 degrees. Spread the almonds out on a cookie sheet and roast for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden, giving them a good stir halfway through to make sure that they roast evenly. Remove from the oven and leave until cool enough to handle, then grind using a food processor or crush with a rolling pin until coarsely ground. Set aside until ready to serve.
• Once the lamb shanks are fully cooked, remove them from the pan and set aside. Add the raisins and honey to the sauce and gently stir to combine. Cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat for about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced to a syrup-like consistency and the raisins are plump.
• When the sauce is ready, return the lamb shanks to the pan to warm them through and coat them with the sauce. Garnish with almonds and serve immediately with fluffy couscous or crusty bread.