Mexican-Braised Lamb Shanks

The temperature has dropped here in New York and I have found myself craving hearty meals with dark, savory flavors. I made this dish for an easy and elegant Saturday night dinner. I used the crockpot to braise the meat because it rocks with any dish that needs low, slow heat. such as lamb shanks. Try to choose shanks with more meat on the bone (for more deliciousness!) This recipe serves two but can be easily doubled to serve more and can be prepared in exactly the same way. I think that shanks make for an elegant dish for company. I used an assortment of chile powders because I love the different flavors that each brings to the dish, but you can use a single chile powder if you don’t have access to them. I served this dish over a butternut squash risotto and the flavors complemented each other beautifully. I will be posting the butternut squash risotto recipe later this week so stay tuned!

Mexican-Braised Lamb Shanks
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 lamb shanks (about 1.5 pounds)
1 cup dry red wine
2 teaspoons New Mexican Chile Powder
1 teaspoon Chipotle Chile Powder
2 teaspoons Smoked Paprika
2 teaspoons Cumin
1 teaspoon thyme
Juice of one orange
1 large clove garlic, minced

1. Salt and pepper the shanks
2. Heat a large skillet and add oil. Brown shanks on all sides and set aside. Remove from heat.
3. Add wine and all spices to pan and stir up the bits on the bottom from the browned meat.
4. Add the shanks to a crockpot and pour wine mixture over. Cover and turn crockpot on low. Turn shanks 3-4 hours in so that both sides are submerged in liquid for part of the time.
5. Cook for 7-9 hours, until the meat is loose from the bone. Remove meat from sauce and tent with aluminum foil.
6. Pour sauce into a sauce pan and simmer until reduced into sauce, about 15 minutes.
7. Serve shanks over mashed potatoes, egg noodles or risotto. Pour sauce over shanks just before serving.