Gluten Free Osso Bucco Lamb Shanks Recipe

Tender and succulent, these lamb shanks are slow cooked with the flavors of modern osso bucco and served in a light broth!

Yield 2 to 4 servings

Osso Bucco Lamb Shanks 

First it was the tender meat. Then the soft vegetables. Next, it was the light broth. Then the acidic pop of slow-cooked tomatoes. Every time I took a bite of this dish, I fell in love. Strictly speaking, it's not exactly a traditional osso bucco (usually made with veal, no tomatoes and served with a gremolata). But it is a modern interpretation made with lamb shanks, a cheat's mirepoix and those delicious tomatoes. No gremolata. No baby cows. But it is phenomenal and easy because it's cooked in the slow cooker!

When I was 21, I took a whistle-stop tour of Milan with two friends. We couldn't afford the pricey Milanese hotels and the hostels were all booked up, so we roughed it outside the piazza in the center of town. Most specifically, we made our bed on the stoop of a Gucci store. There were at least a dozen other backpackers sleeping outside, too, and police officers patrolled the area on foot the entire night so we felt relatively safe. Our flight to Milan had been of the budget variety and we'd shelled out just $45 each on a return ticket. Needless to say, we weren't exactly rolling in the dough. Which was a shame because we passed dozens of amazing restaurants, all serving up typical Milanese fare, including authentic osso bucco. Had I prioritized properly, I probably would have spent less money on pizza and gelatto and had an actual proper meal in a restaurant.

So this version of osso bucco is my homage to a dish I never got to try, but with a few modern twists and my own interpretation. The modern twists include the addition of a mirepoix--that's just a fancy French word for carrot, onion and celery. Except my mirepoix is a cheat's version: I use celery salt in place of actual celery. You still the get the flavor of celery but you don't have to buy a whole bunch to have it rot in the bottom of your fridge.

There are also a couple of modern recipes for osso bucco that include tomatoes and skip the gremolata. I'm a fan of this because I love a good, plump tomato and I'm not too keen on gremolata. To be honest, with the rich broth, the last thing you need is another sauce on the plate.

I served the osso bucco with steamed rice but traditionally, it's paired with mashed potatoes. You could serve yours either way. Oh, and don't skimp on the wine, it really adds depth to the dish.

Be sure to follow this board for more easy crock pot recipes:

Ingredients:

For the osso bucco lamb shanks
1/4 cup sherry
1/2 cup white wine
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp celery salt
1 onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 tbsp parsley
2 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
2 bone-in lamb shanks
chicken stock
tomatoes
salt
pepper

Instructions:

Osso Bucco Lamb Shanks

1. Melt the butter with the oil in a saucepan.
2. Brown the lamb shanks on all sides, about 5 to 10 minutes. Place shanks in crock pot.
3. Pour enough chicken stock over the lamb shanks to just cover them.
4. Fry the onion, carrots, garlic, bay, parsley, rosemary and celery salt until soft, about 5 minutes.
5. Add the wine and sherry and bring to the boil.
6. Pour the wine, sherry and vegetables and herbs into the slow cooker with salt and pepper.
7. Cook on high for four hours or until the shanks are tender.
8. Half an hour before you remove the shanks, add the tomatoes.
9. Serve with rice or mashed potato.

Like the look of those lamb shanks? You might enjoy this, too:

Slowcooker Cashew Chicken

Sweet Bell Pepper Poppers with Butter Chicken and Crushed Cannellini Rice

Moroccan Black Bream Salad with Slowcooked Carrots