Help with lamb shanks
Discussion
I do enjoy a nice lamb shank, who doesn't? 
So yesterday I made some in the slow cooker but the taste just wasn't "there", almost as if they lacked seasoning or something? Recipe was as follows....
Cover shanks in flour & brown off in frying pan
Chop 2 onions & place in slow cooker
Sit shanks on bed of onions with a sprig of rosemary
Flash off half bottle of good red wine in the frying pan used for browning (juices kept in)
Cover shanks with reduced red wine
Top up with 400ml of stock, one veg cube one chicken
Cook on low heat for 7hrs
This is similar to how I make my beef brisket, however with that I'd use double the amount of beef stock & a couple of bulbs of chopped garlic too, plus I'd liberally cost the brisket in salt & pepper.
While I was thickening the gravy for the shanks it just lacked any "oomph" to the flavour, I added salt & pepper which did improve things but it still wasn't that great. The shanks were lovely & tender but just lacked any real decent babble flavour.
Any tips? Anything I'm doing obviously wrong?
So yesterday I made some in the slow cooker but the taste just wasn't "there", almost as if they lacked seasoning or something? Recipe was as follows....
Cover shanks in flour & brown off in frying pan
Chop 2 onions & place in slow cooker
Sit shanks on bed of onions with a sprig of rosemary
Flash off half bottle of good red wine in the frying pan used for browning (juices kept in)
Cover shanks with reduced red wine
Top up with 400ml of stock, one veg cube one chicken
Cook on low heat for 7hrs
This is similar to how I make my beef brisket, however with that I'd use double the amount of beef stock & a couple of bulbs of chopped garlic too, plus I'd liberally cost the brisket in salt & pepper.
While I was thickening the gravy for the shanks it just lacked any "oomph" to the flavour, I added salt & pepper which did improve things but it still wasn't that great. The shanks were lovely & tender but just lacked any real decent babble flavour.
Any tips? Anything I'm doing obviously wrong?
How far did you reduce the gravy down? If you had to thicken it, (particularly given the earlier addition of flour when browning the meat) this suggests that it might have benefited from a little more time bubbling down into a thicker, meatier sauce. You can take the shanks out to rest and boil the sauce down on a high heat.
Also, chicken and veg stock will give background flavour but won't provide a very 'upfront' meaty taste. Plus the lamb fat can wash out the acidity brought by the wine a bit. If you need a quick fix for a meaty red wine sauce, you can always quickly boil half a lamb/beef cube down in another pan with a glass of wine down to a couple of tablespoons' worth of 'oomph' to add in.
Also, chicken and veg stock will give background flavour but won't provide a very 'upfront' meaty taste. Plus the lamb fat can wash out the acidity brought by the wine a bit. If you need a quick fix for a meaty red wine sauce, you can always quickly boil half a lamb/beef cube down in another pan with a glass of wine down to a couple of tablespoons' worth of 'oomph' to add in.
some good advice, thanks chaps 
i didn't reduce the stock down & only thickened the gravy with a cornflour mix so this may help a little. i've also used the redcurrnet jam trick when doing other lamb dishes so will add this next time too.
however......
as posted by many i think it was a combination of my lack of seasoning & the lamb fat washing away the taste (when i read this a light-bulb did go off as that was how it tasted-that the taste had just been washed out of the dish) that spoiled it.
the rosemary i used was just a sprig about 8" long from my garden-try more next time? garlic we do tend to use in most things so this was schoolboy on my part but any other tips would be greatly received on what to put in.
{b]i used a gravy separator to split the stock from the fat before i made the gravy but what is the best way to stop the fat from washing away the taste? i really think this is the issue btw.[/b]
also in the past i've made the stock as per my brisket recipe, say 3 meat stock cubes to 1 veg but when i tried it with lamb it wasn't an overly fantastic flavour-just a bit too "lamby" if you know what i mean?
i didn't reduce the stock down & only thickened the gravy with a cornflour mix so this may help a little. i've also used the redcurrnet jam trick when doing other lamb dishes so will add this next time too.
however......
as posted by many i think it was a combination of my lack of seasoning & the lamb fat washing away the taste (when i read this a light-bulb did go off as that was how it tasted-that the taste had just been washed out of the dish) that spoiled it.
the rosemary i used was just a sprig about 8" long from my garden-try more next time? garlic we do tend to use in most things so this was schoolboy on my part but any other tips would be greatly received on what to put in.
{b]i used a gravy separator to split the stock from the fat before i made the gravy but what is the best way to stop the fat from washing away the taste? i really think this is the issue btw.[/b]
also in the past i've made the stock as per my brisket recipe, say 3 meat stock cubes to 1 veg but when i tried it with lamb it wasn't an overly fantastic flavour-just a bit too "lamby" if you know what i mean?
didn't pay attention to where the lamb was from but our local morrisons is usually excellent in this regard.
perhaps i different accompaniment might have helped too? i did the usual peas & mash but perhaps it needs something with a little more "bite" to cut through the fat & give more flavour?
perhaps i different accompaniment might have helped too? i did the usual peas & mash but perhaps it needs something with a little more "bite" to cut through the fat & give more flavour?
Recenly had a 'lightbulb moment' whilst listening to radio 4 regarding how to marinade meat to improve the flavour and tenderness.
The radio 4 person (dont ask me who!) was laying out the principles as follows:
Whatever marinade you use, should be done for at least 24hrs, and preferably 48hrs before cooking.
The reason for this is: applying marinade to meat will normally include seasonimg which will draw out the moisture from the meat in the first hour or so, and dry it out, which means if you cook it after only a couple of hours chances are you will have made the meat tougher than if no marinade!
However, if left in the marinade for a much longer period, something magical happens (his quote) in that the moisture drawn out of the meat will combine with the marinade, then if left for long enough the cells of the meat will gradually draw back the moisture into itself together with all the flavours in the marinade resulting in much tenderer tastier meat.
Weii, I though lets give this a go.
So big leg of Lamb, Friday night, make marinade wth garlic, rosemary, oil, salt and pepper only. Slap all over the meat, clingfilm, into the fridge until sunday morning.
Take out sunday morning, do the usual, slow cook in the oven, and the result?
Quite simply it was the tenderest best flavoured leg of lamb we've ever eaten!!!
The radio 4 person (dont ask me who!) was laying out the principles as follows:
Whatever marinade you use, should be done for at least 24hrs, and preferably 48hrs before cooking.
The reason for this is: applying marinade to meat will normally include seasonimg which will draw out the moisture from the meat in the first hour or so, and dry it out, which means if you cook it after only a couple of hours chances are you will have made the meat tougher than if no marinade!
However, if left in the marinade for a much longer period, something magical happens (his quote) in that the moisture drawn out of the meat will combine with the marinade, then if left for long enough the cells of the meat will gradually draw back the moisture into itself together with all the flavours in the marinade resulting in much tenderer tastier meat.
Weii, I though lets give this a go.
So big leg of Lamb, Friday night, make marinade wth garlic, rosemary, oil, salt and pepper only. Slap all over the meat, clingfilm, into the fridge until sunday morning.
Take out sunday morning, do the usual, slow cook in the oven, and the result?
Quite simply it was the tenderest best flavoured leg of lamb we've ever eaten!!!
You should always season meat before cooking...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7BE-l0KA-s
This guy (Adrian Richardson) has a show called "Secret Meat Business" on the Good Food channel. It's fab.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7BE-l0KA-s
This guy (Adrian Richardson) has a show called "Secret Meat Business" on the Good Food channel. It's fab.
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