Bean

Mediterranean Lamb Shanks with Creamy White Beans

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May  1, 2014
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Mediterranean Lamb Shanks with Creamy White Beans
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

I love lamb – it always feels like a celebration to me. Especially lamb shanks. This recipe is a proven crowd-pleaser, and is guaranteed to make the house smell like heaven. It’s perfect for family gatherings, when you don’t want to spend much time trapped behind your stove. Flavorful and foolproof, this tends to be my favorite preparation: just sear the shanks and let them roast for hours. —Feed Me Dearly

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the lamb
  • 4 lamb shanks, each a little over a pound; 1 shank is 1 portion
  • 3 teaspoons salt, divided
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
  • 2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
  • 2 medium celery ribs, coarsely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
  • 6 ounces canned tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup orange juice from 1 medium navel orange
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 3 cups water
  • 6 ounces or two big handfuls of green olives, pitted and copped
  • 2 medium navel oranges, segmented and cut crosswise into thirds
  • For the beans
  • 32 ounces cannellini beans (I like to make more than necessary to make a quick and easy soup base with the leftover beans)
  • 3 cups 3 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts, cleaned of all sand (about 3 medium leeks)
  • 6 tablespoons butter (I know, it’s a lot)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
  1. For the lamb
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  3. Heat large dutch oven on medium-high.
  4. With a teaspoon of salt and pepper to taste, season the lamb shanks, then dredge in the flour, shaking off the excess.
  5. Add the olive oil, then the lamb shanks and sear them evenly on all sides, making sure they’re nice and crusty brown. This will take 5 to 6 minutes per batch.
  6. While the lamb is searing, in the bowl of a food processer, puree the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. Add the cayenne, 1 teaspoon of salt, and rosemary. Pulse to blend.
  7. Once meat has finished searing, remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Check the bottom of your dutch oven – if it’s golden brown, continue with the next step. However, if there is quite a bit of black charring at the bottom of the pan, wipe it out and start clean with 2 more tbsp olive oil.
  8. Add the vegetables from the processor to the pot, along with 1 teaspoon of salt, and pepper to taste.
  9. Let the vegetables sweat for 3-5 minutes until they’ve released their juices and are starting to looking soft.
  10. Add the tomato paste and cook the whole mixture for 5 mins to concentrate the flavors.
  11. Deglaze the vegetables with the orange juice, red wine and water, and simmer, scraping the bottom of the pot, for 1 minute.
  12. Add the lamb back with any accumulated juices, and bring to a boil.
  13. Cover with the lid, and pop into your preheated oven.
  14. Braise the lamb for 2.5 hrs.
  15. 30 minutes before serving, take the lid off, add oranges and olives, and cook uncovered for another 30 minutes to get the lamb extra golden and warm the oranges and olives.
  1. For the beans
  2. Soak the beans overnight.
  3. Starting right after you’ve put the lamb in the oven, put the beans in a large pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2 hours (I know beans are supposed to cook in less time than 2 hours, but for some reason, even with beans straight from the store, mine take longer than the package says…and you don’t want to hold up your meal waiting for the beans).
  4. Meanwhile, warm the butter in a large pan at medium-low heat, and when melted, add the chopped leeks. Sautee gently until leeks are creamy and soft. If they begin to color, add a half cup of water and continue until tender.
  5. When the beans are soft, drain, and add to the leeks. Stir the mixture together gently, and season to taste.
  6. To plate: Mound the beans onto a large serving platter to make a bed for the lamb. With tongs, transfer the lamb onto the beans and serve.
  7. Notes: If you have extra shanks, the lamb will keep in the fridge (and even get better with age) for the next 2-3 days.
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