Winter showed up for real in NYC this weekend so it was time for some hearty braising. I picked up some lamb shanks from Florence Meat Market that fit the bill nicely. A good winter braise is pretty easy. In this case, I caramelized some onions and shallots, added rosemary, seared the shanks, then braised in a mixture of red wine and veal stock for 3 hours. A quick reduction and straining of the braising liquid leaves a really nice gravy.

Slow cooked lamb shank with gremolata and butternut squash gratin. These lamb shanks were the first in what I’m sure will be a long line of tests to find the best way to cook them sous vide. Last week’s 72-hour short ribs made it clear that very low temperatures and very long cook times could do wonders for these tougher, more flavorful cuts. The problem is, most of the recipes online tell you to cook lamb shanks at 180 for some number of hours. At that temperature, what’s the point? I want to use sous vide to make sure these babies come out medium rare and tender, not just super tender. But, lamb shanks also have all kinds of connective tissue that only just begins to break down at 140 degrees.

So, that’s where I started with my first test—a 140 degree water bath for 48 hours, with nothing other than salt and pepper. A quick sear at the end leaves the shanks looking like you see in the picture above. The results are delicious, but not quite right yet. On the plus side, the flavor is incredible. Braised shanks will never have such a deep lamb flavor or be cooked to a perfect medium rare like these are. But, at this temperature and duration, too much of the connective tissue remained in tact. It was fine and didn’t detract too much from the experience, but I would never serve them to guests that way. The plans for future testing include extending the time to 72 hours, raising the temperature a degree or two, and adding fat to the bag to essentially turn the process into confit.