One-Pot Braised Lamb Shanks with Tomato Orzo

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Four lamb shanks go into a Dutch oven with tomato, red wine, cinnamon and oregano and come out after three hours falling off the bone. Then the orzo goes straight into the same pan, where it drinks up every bit of the braising liquid and turns creamy without a drop of cream. Grated kefalotyri melts over the top at the end. One pot, one oven, almost no active work after the first twenty minutes.

Ingredients

• 4 lamb shanks (about 3 1/2 lb / 1.6 kg total)
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 28-oz can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken or beef broth
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tsp dried Greek oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 whole allspice berries (or 1/4 tsp ground)
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 strips lemon zest, peeled wide

• 1 1/2 cups orzo (about 10 oz)
• 1 1/2 cups hot water or broth, as needed
• 3/4 cup grated kefalotyri, or pecorino romano
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

1. Pat the lamb shanks completely dry and season all over with the 2 tsp salt and the pepper. Let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes while you chop the vegetables. Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C).
2. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven (6-7 quart, wide enough to hold the shanks in one layer) over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Sear the shanks in two batches, 3-4 minutes per side, until deeply browned on all surfaces — about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
3. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion and carrot with a pinch of salt and cook 6-8 minutes, scraping up the browned bits, until softened and golden at the edges. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
4. Stir in the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes until it darkens to brick red and smells sweet. Pour in the red wine, bring to a hard simmer, and reduce by half, about 4 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot clean.
5. Add the crushed tomatoes with their juice, the broth, cinnamon stick, oregano, bay leaves, allspice, honey and lemon zest strips. Bring to a simmer and taste — it should be assertively seasoned. Nestle the shanks in, along with any juices from the plate; the liquid should come about two-thirds up the meat.
6. Cover the pot and transfer to the oven. Braise for 2 1/2 hours, turning the shanks once at the halfway point, until the meat is fork-tender and pulling back from the bone. If the liquid drops below the halfway point at any time, add 1/2 cup hot water.
7. Move the shanks to a plate and tent with foil. Fish out and discard the cinnamon stick, bay leaves, allspice and lemon zest. Skim the fat from the surface of the sauce with a wide spoon — expect 1/4 to 1/2 cup. Measure what's left: you want about 4 cups of liquidy sauce, so top up with hot water or broth as needed.
8. Set the pot over medium heat, bring the sauce to a simmer, and stir in the orzo. Return the shanks to the pot, pushing them into the orzo, and spoon a little sauce over each. Cover and bake at 325°F for 20 minutes, stirring the orzo once at 10 minutes so it doesn't catch on the bottom.
9. Uncover, scatter half the kefalotyri over the surface, and bake 8-10 minutes more, until the orzo is tender with a slight bite and the sauce is thick and creamy rather than soupy. It will continue to absorb as it sits.
10. Stir the butter and the remaining kefalotyri into the orzo around the shanks. Taste and adjust salt. Let the pot rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Scatter the feta and parsley over the top and serve straight from the pot with lemon wedges.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

More from Sprig Originals

One-Skillet Blackened Cajun Chicken Pasta

One-Pot Chicken Creole

Dark Roux Seafood Gumbo with Quick Shrimp Stock

Are you this recipe's original author or publisher? Report a problem