Lamb Shank, Black Garlic and Tomato Tagine with Gamay Noir
Lamb Shank, Black Garlic and Tomato Tagine.
Today we return to Persiana to try the Lamb Shanks which were amongst the recipes that had this book calling to us. After the success of the Shirazi Salad naturally our hopes were high for the shanks.
Serves 4
Shanks a cooking
Ingredients
olive oil
2 Large Onions, diced
3 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp tumeric
1 tsp ground cinnamon
6 lamb shanks
sea salt and black pepper
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
2 x 400g cans of tomatoes
6 large tomatoes halved
4 tbsp syrupy balsamic vinegar
2 black garlic bulbs, cloves peeled
Instructions
In a large saucepan add a some olive oil and fry the onions over medium heat for a couple of minutes before adding the dry spices and the lamb shanks. Brown the lamb shanks on all sides then fold the onion and spice mixture over them again and season with the sea salt and black pepper.
Add the bay leaves, thyme, canned and fresh tomatoes and balsamic vinegar, then pour in enough water to cover the meat. Reduce the heat to low-medium, place a lid on the saucepan and cook for two hours, stirring every 30 minutes to prevent sticking.
We weren’t sure what black garlic bulbs were, nor did we have any. So we took two normal garlic bulbs, peeled the cloves and fried them separately in olive oil until lightly browned.
Once cooked, add the soft black garlic cloves, stirring them into the sauce. Add a little more weater to the saucepan if needed. Taste the tagine and adjust the seasoning if required., then cook the shanks for a further hour without the lid on before serving.
We served ours on a bed of potato mash with some sprigs of parsley.
And the taste? I’m going to use words in a futile attempt to do justice to the taste. In the process of the shanks slowly cooking they absorbed the amazingly rich tomato flavour deep within them and the sauce was a richly flavoured thick broth. The best shanks I can remember having had anywhere, any place.
And to go with it we tried our first Gamay Noir, and its rich flavour did a stirling job of accompanying the Tagine.
Vinoque Gamay Noir, Yarra Valley AUS, , $25, 8/10
On a Tuesday in June I was able to escape into the countryside for the day. My partner and I headed out of Melbourne and into the Yarra Valley for a day of wine tasting, lunch and relaxation. We only had one winery we were visiting, Yering Station, and we were aiming to get there before the crowds and so ensure we had a chance for a good chat with the staff.
As a birthday treat we headed up to Healesville in Victoria to spend the morning at the cellar door for Giant Steps Winery. The cellar door is a restaurant with its own bakery, with a section set aside for wine tasting. The bakery is hard to resist so we opened with a relaxing coffee and cake before wandering over to peruse the wine selection.