This is something that I’ve been wanting to make for awhile. Initially, I wanted to use an entire bone in leg of lamb but a few weeks ago, the circuit that my freezer was connected to decided to short out while I was in Pittsburgh for the Paleo Royal Wedding of The Food Lovers’ Primal Palate. As a result, we lost probably around $500 worth of high quality meats including some more pork belly for making bacon. After the initial shock wore off, I had to just accept it and start rebuilding my meat stockpile. For this dish, I couldn’t seem to find bone in leg of lamb anywhere only boneless, so I went for a couple of meaty lamb shanks and they worked out really well.
There is this great restaurant near my house that makes a rendition of this dish, but in sandwich form. I would just get it sans bread and it was amazing. Since I first had it earlier in the Summer, I’ve really wanted to do my own twist on it. I have braised short ribs using this fashion before but I have never made possibly the simplest part of this dish: Pickled Red Onions. After some internet research and some dismal failures, I finally figured it out and now this dish has to be one of my all time favorite things to eat.
- 1 large red onion, sliced into thin half moon rings
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1½ teaspoons sea salt
- 1½ teaspoons whole black peppercorns
- ½ cinnamon stick
- 1 bay leaf
- 2-3 lbs lamb shanks
- 1 onion, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, diced
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 can tomato paste
- 2 cups organic red wine
- 4 cups beef stock
- 2 tbs tallow
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- salt and pepper
- Place onion slices in medium bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients to a heavy medium saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. Whisk continuously for 5 minutes.
- Pour pickling liquid over onions in bowl. Cover; cool to room temperature. Refrigerate 24 hrs. Keep chilled for up to 3 weeks. Drain before serving.
- Season lamb shanks on all sides liberally with salt and pepper and set aside
- In a large cast iron skillet, melt tallow over medium high heat.
- Once tallow has melted, sear lamb on all sides, about 8-10 minutes total.
- Once lamb has finished searing, reduce heat to medium and transfer lamb shanks to Crock Pot
- Add onion and garlic to saucepan and sautee until tender, about 10 minutes
- Add in red wine to deglaze the pan and reduce by half.
- Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste and beef stock, cover and simmer for 5-10 minutes.
- Transfer mixture to blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour mixture over lamb shanks in the Crock Pot and cook on low for 8 hours. If liquid doesn't completely cover lamb, turn once half way through cooking process.
- Serve with pickled red onions and crumbled goat cheese and enjoy.
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