Aromatic Spiced Lamb Shank

Ingredients

Yield:

serves 4

• Braised Lamb Shank

  • 4 lamb shanks
  • 1 large carrot – diced into 1” pieces
  • 1 large onion – diced into 1” pieces
  • 3 inches, sliced fresh ginger
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 bay leafs
  • 2 sprigs, fresh rosemary
  • 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp cardamom pods
  • 1 TBSP coriander
  • 4 pc cloves
  • 1 roma tomato – chopped
  • 2 cans ginger ale
  • 1 cup pomegranate juice
  • 1 litre chicken stock
  • 1 TBSP olive oil

• Couscous

  • 1 cups couscous
  • 1 cup chickpeas
  • 1 medium shallot, diced
  • 1 pc garlic clove – chopped
  • 1 pint of cherry tomatoes – quartered
  • 1 bunch flat leaf parsley – chopped
  • 3 TBSP olive oil
  • 1 whole pomegranate
  • 1/2 cup dried apricots – sliced

• Minted Yogurt

  • 1 cup plain yogurt (preferably Greek style yogurt)
  • 1 TBSP fresh mint
  • 1 " fresh ginger, grated fine
  • 1 lime juiced

Preparation

Difficulty:

Medium

Time:

40 MinutesPreparation

Total Time:

4 HoursPrep & Cook Time

1. Lamb

   1. preheat oven to 300F
   2. place a Dutch oven, or oven safe pan large enough to hold 4 lamb shanks along with 2 liters of liquid, over medium heat with olive oil
   3. lightly season lamb shanks and sear all sides of lamb in oil
   4. once lamb is evenly seared remove from pan setting aside
   5. add onion, ginger, garlic & carrot allowing to cook down and caramelize nicely without burning
   6. as onions begin to show colour add bay leaf, mustard seed, cardamom, coriander and clove and continue cooking until spices begin to become aromatic
   7. add roma tomato cooking until liquid begins to be released from tomato
   8. return lamb shanks to the pan and increase heat to medium-high adding pomegranate juice and ginger ale
   9. allow liquid to reduce by half followed by adding chicken stock and fresh rosemary
   10. bring to a light simmer and cover with lid or aluminum foil
   11. place in oven and cook until tender, about 3 to 4 hours
   12. once tender remove from oven and cool in liquid, it is best if allowed to rest overnight in the fridge
   13. to serve, heat up lamb until liquid melts and lamb can be removed
   14. strain liquid and return to simmer to reduce until desired thickness adding lamb shanks back to liquid to heat through

2. Couscous

   1. place dry couscous, 1 TBSP olive oil and generous pinch of salt in a shallow container, ideally with a flat bottom allowing even 1” to 2” thickness of couscous
   2. stir couscous to ensure it is evenly coated with olive oil
   3. bring a full kettle of water to a boil
   4. slowly pour water over couscous only adding enough water so the distance between the top of the couscous and the top of the water is about ¾” to 1”
   5. cover immediately with plastic wrap, leave to steep about 5 minutes
   6. place a frying pan over medium heat with 2 TBSP of olive oil
   7. add julienne shallots to pan, as they become translucent add garlic and chickpeas
   8. remove plastic from couscous and fluff using a fork
   9. add couscous to pan along with ¼ cup of water
   10. toss together and remove from heat
   11. add parsley, apricot and tomatoes
   12. adjust seasoning to taste and garnish with pomegranate seeds

3. Minted Yogurt

   1. mix mint, fresh lime juice and 2 tsp of freshly grated ginger into yogurt