Ossobuco, veal or beef shank, is an extraordinarily sensual meat, with a satiny texture that verges on the libidinous. Ossobuco does take a while to cook, but if you make this recipe you won't have to watch it at all for most of the time. In short, a perfect dish for when you're busy doing other things! To serve 4:
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours
Ingredients:
- 4 veal or beef shanks weighing about a half pound (225 g) each
- 1 1/4 cups dry white wine
- 1 1/4 cups broth (unsalted bouillon will be fine)
- A medium onion, finely minced
- 2 tablespoons minced parsley
- 4 sprigs of fresh watercress (as garnish; you could also use other greens)
- Flour
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
Preheat your oven to 400 F (200 C)
While it's heating, put the olive oil and butter in a roasting pan large enough for the shanks to lie flat in a single layer. Heat them over a moderate flame, and in the meantime flour the shanks, shaking off whatever doesn't stick to the meat. Add the meat and cook for several minutes, turning the shanks once or twice to brown both sides. Salt the meat lightly, add the wine, and cook over a brisk flame, shaking the pan occasionally lest the shanks stick to the bottom and burn.
In the meantime, heat the broth. When almost all of the wine has evaporated, sprinkle the hot broth over the meat, cover the pan tightly with a sheet of aluminum foil, and transfer it to the oven.
Roast the shanks for at least 2 hours; there will be no need to touch them. When the time is up they will be very tender, while the sauce will be rich and thick.
Transfer the shanks to a serving dish, spoon the drippings over them, dust them with the minced parsley, and garnish them with the watercress, or any other green you prefer. Serve at once with a full bodied red wine. Barolo would be nice.
Note: If you want to be quite traditional, you could serve the shanks over a bed of spinaci rifatti, recooked spinach.
While it's heating, put the olive oil and butter in a roasting pan large enough for the shanks to lie flat in a single layer. Heat them over a moderate flame, and in the meantime flour the shanks, shaking off whatever doesn't stick to the meat. Add the meat and cook for several minutes, turning the shanks once or twice to brown both sides. Salt the meat lightly, add the wine, and cook over a brisk flame, shaking the pan occasionally lest the shanks stick to the bottom and burn.
In the meantime, heat the broth. When almost all of the wine has evaporated, sprinkle the hot broth over the meat, cover the pan tightly with a sheet of aluminum foil, and transfer it to the oven.
Roast the shanks for at least 2 hours; there will be no need to touch them. When the time is up they will be very tender, while the sauce will be rich and thick.
Transfer the shanks to a serving dish, spoon the drippings over them, dust them with the minced parsley, and garnish them with the watercress, or any other green you prefer. Serve at once with a full bodied red wine. Barolo would be nice.
Note: If you want to be quite traditional, you could serve the shanks over a bed of spinaci rifatti, recooked spinach.
