This Easter lamb dish from Chez Panisse is traditional cooking at its best. The generous, moist and flavoursome meat comes effortlessly off the bone. Dressed with a wonderfully lifting gremolata, it is paired with richly flavoured, saucy and melting beans tucked under a most gratifying layer of bread crumbs. The best kind of food for a large family feast filled with love, laughter, and good wine.
Braised lamb shanks with gratin of flageolet beans
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Recipe by: Paul Bertolli with Alice Waters, Chez Panisse Cooking (1988) Busy:1 hour, Total prep time: 3h30 plus overnight soaking Serves: 4 |
One day before:
Rinse and soak the beans overnight in at least double their volume in water
Can be done ahead:
Warm the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed pot or dutch oven. Add the carrot, celery, onion and garlic and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the vegetables soften slightly and release their perfume. Add the thyme, tomatoes, prociutto hock and beans. Cover with the broth and stir in half the salt. Bring the beans to a simmer, cover and cook for 1-1/2 hours.
Remove the lid after 1 hour, raise the heat slightly so that the liquid bubbles all over its surface, and allow the liquid to reduce during the last 30 minutes so that it is at the same level as the beans. When stirred, the beans should appear saucy. Add the remaining salt to taste. If there is still too much liquid after 30 minutes, take the beans off the heat, transfer most of the liquid to a saucepan and reduce over medium-high heat until getting the right amount.
Remove the prosciutto hock and the thyme sprigs. Cut the meat and rind from the prosciutto. Chop the meat into into coarse bits and the rind as finely as possible (the fat is important to flavour the dish so keep it in, just make sure it is finely chopped so as to feel imperceptible once mixed with the beans). Add both back to the beans along with 2- 1/2 tablespoons of the parsley. Pour the beans into a baking dish (10 by 8 by 2 inches).
Mix the crumbs with the remaining 2 tablespoons parsley, olive oil and Parmesan. Reserve until time of baking.
50 minutes before serving:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F). Spread the crumbs over the beans in an even layer. Bake the beans in the oven for 40 minutes or until the edges bubble and the crumbs are evenly browned. Serve the bean gratin in its dish straight to the table.
Prepare the lamb shanks
You will need a large pan with a lid that fits tightly, the shanks should rest side by side in it without crowding one another. A heavy 12-inch pot or dutch oven will work great.
Can be done ahead (e.g in the morning), otherwise a bit over 3 hours before serving:
Preheat the pan over low heat with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Meanwhile lightly salt and pepper the shanks. Place them in the pan and brown them on all sides over low heat allowing about 15 minutes per side. The shanks should sizzle gently in the pan, this will take about one hour.
A bit over 2 hours before serving:
Add the carrots, shallots and garlic to the pan and cook for 5 minutes to release their flavour, stirring occasionally.
Deglaze the pan with 10 cL (1/2 cup) water, scraping up all the brown bits adhering to the bottom. Add 20 cL (a bit under a cup) more water, the thyme sprigs and celery bits and set the shanks on top. Adjust the heat to the barest simmer and cover tightly so almost no steam escapes. Braise the shanks for 2 hours, undisturbed.
Remove the shanks from the pan and keep them in a warm place while you finish the sauce. The Panisse recipe says to pass the cooking juices, vegetables and garlic through a blade but I didn't, the sauce had a perfect texture and the garlic cloves looked too beautiful and melting to be crushed. Add a bit of water if needed.
Mix together the gremolata. Serve the shanks on individual plates, pour the sauce over and around each one and sprinkle liberally with gremolata.
Prepare the bean gratin
One day before:
Rinse and soak the beans overnight in at least double their volume in water
Can be done ahead:
Warm the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed pot or dutch oven. Add the carrot, celery, onion and garlic and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the vegetables soften slightly and release their perfume. Add the thyme, tomatoes, prociutto hock and beans. Cover with the broth and stir in half the salt. Bring the beans to a simmer, cover and cook for 1-1/2 hours.
Remove the lid after 1 hour, raise the heat slightly so that the liquid bubbles all over its surface, and allow the liquid to reduce during the last 30 minutes so that it is at the same level as the beans. When stirred, the beans should appear saucy. Add the remaining salt to taste. If there is still too much liquid after 30 minutes, take the beans off the heat, transfer most of the liquid to a saucepan and reduce over medium-high heat until getting the right amount.
Remove the prosciutto hock and the thyme sprigs. Cut the meat and rind from the prosciutto. Chop the meat into into coarse bits and the rind as finely as possible (the fat is important to flavour the dish so keep it in, just make sure it is finely chopped so as to feel imperceptible once mixed with the beans). Add both back to the beans along with 2- 1/2 tablespoons of the parsley. Pour the beans into a baking dish (10 by 8 by 2 inches).
Mix the crumbs with the remaining 2 tablespoons parsley, olive oil and Parmesan. Reserve until time of baking.
50 minutes before serving:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F). Spread the crumbs over the beans in an even layer. Bake the beans in the oven for 40 minutes or until the edges bubble and the crumbs are evenly browned. Serve the bean gratin in its dish straight to the table.
Prepare the lamb shanks
You will need a large pan with a lid that fits tightly, the shanks should rest side by side in it without crowding one another. A heavy 12-inch pot or dutch oven will work great.
Can be done ahead (e.g in the morning), otherwise a bit over 3 hours before serving:
Preheat the pan over low heat with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Meanwhile lightly salt and pepper the shanks. Place them in the pan and brown them on all sides over low heat allowing about 15 minutes per side. The shanks should sizzle gently in the pan, this will take about one hour.
A bit over 2 hours before serving:
Add the carrots, shallots and garlic to the pan and cook for 5 minutes to release their flavour, stirring occasionally.
Deglaze the pan with 10 cL (1/2 cup) water, scraping up all the brown bits adhering to the bottom. Add 20 cL (a bit under a cup) more water, the thyme sprigs and celery bits and set the shanks on top. Adjust the heat to the barest simmer and cover tightly so almost no steam escapes. Braise the shanks for 2 hours, undisturbed.
Remove the shanks from the pan and keep them in a warm place while you finish the sauce. The Panisse recipe says to pass the cooking juices, vegetables and garlic through a blade but I didn’t, the sauce had a perfect texture and the garlic cloves looked too beautiful and melting to be crushed. Add a bit of water if needed.
Mix together the gremolata. Serve the shanks on individual plates, pour the sauce over and around each one and sprinkle liberally with gremolata.
Have your butcher saw off 2 inches of the bone at the foot of the shanks if needed, otherwise they may be unwieldy on the plate. Also ask him to trim the fat off the shanks if needed, leaving only a thin layer.
For the gratin you can use a can of chopped tomatoes instead of fresh ones, this will save you a great deal of time.
Buy fresh beef broth if you can, it will flavour the beans much more beautifully than a cube could do. If using cubes, do not salt the dish until after the liquids have been reduced (i.e. just before transferring to the gratin dish), you will likely need less of it as cubes are high in salt.
For the gratin you can use a can of chopped tomatoes instead of fresh ones, this will save you a great deal of time.
Buy fresh beef broth if you can, it will flavour the beans much more beautifully than a cube could do. If using cubes, do not salt the dish until after the liquids have been reduced (i.e. just before transferring to the gratin dish), you will likely need less of it as cubes are high in salt.
Ingredients
For the lamb:
4 lamb shanks ( about 5 pounds - choose them small and even so that one shank can be eaten by one person)
Salt and pepper
1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced
9 cloves garlic, unpeeled
30cL (1-1/4 cup) water
3 leafy sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon chopped leaves or 1/2 celery stalk, chopped
For the gremolata:
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 large clove garlic, very finely chopped
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
For the gratin of flageolet beans:
30 cL (1-1/4 cups) dry flageolet or cannellini beans, washed, picked over and soaked in cold water overnight
2 tablespoons pure olive oil
1 carrot (60 g), peeled and finely diced
1/2 large stalk of celery (60 g), finely finely diced
1 small yellow onion (5 ounces) finely diced
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 leafy sprigs thyme
5 vine tomatoes (400g), peeled, seeded, diced (or a 400 g tin diced tomatoes, drained)
150 g Piece of prosciutto hock with rind attached
1 l (4 cups) beef broth
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley
200 mL (just under 1 cup bread crumbs)
3 tablespoons extra virgin oil
2 tablespoons grated fresh parmesan
For the lamb:
4 lamb shanks ( about 5 pounds - choose them small and even so that one shank can be eaten by one person)
Salt and pepper
1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced
9 cloves garlic, unpeeled
30cL (1-1/4 cup) water
3 leafy sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon chopped leaves or 1/2 celery stalk, chopped
For the gremolata:
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 large clove garlic, very finely chopped
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
For the gratin of flageolet beans:
30 cL (1-1/4 cups) dry flageolet or cannellini beans, washed, picked over and soaked in cold water overnight
2 tablespoons pure olive oil
1 carrot (60 g), peeled and finely diced
1/2 large stalk of celery (60 g), finely finely diced
1 small yellow onion (5 ounces) finely diced
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 leafy sprigs thyme
5 vine tomatoes (400g), peeled, seeded, diced (or a 400 g tin diced tomatoes, drained)
150 g Piece of prosciutto hock with rind attached
1 l (4 cups) beef broth
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley
200 mL (just under 1 cup bread crumbs)
3 tablespoons extra virgin oil
2 tablespoons grated fresh parmesan
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