Aussies love slow cooked lamb shanks, and this might be the king of them all! With a rich, deeply flavoured red wine sauce, this is the sort of food you’ll find on the menu of fine dining restaurants.
Just like the Pork Braised Lamb Shanks recipe, this is straightforward to make, but calls for patience to let the lamb shanks cook slowly until they become meltingly tender. Oven, slow cooker, pressure cooker or stove top. Mop your bowl clean with Irish Soda Bread, a quick and easy rustic no-yeast bread!
Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks
I have a real soft spot for slow cooked lamb shanks. I just love the look of a hunk of meltingly tender meat wrapped around the bone. Hits my carnivore sweet-spot, every time.
Honestly, if you put this and a towering frosted cake in front of me, this would win every day of the week and twice on Sunday:
Cooking lamb shanks is easy!
Being a tough cut of meat that needs slow cooking to make it fall-off-the-bone tender, lamb shanks are actually very forgiving so it’s a real easy cut to cook with.
Leave it in for an hour too long, and the worst that will happen is that the meat falls off the bone when you go to serve it. If it’s not yet fork tender, just add more liquid and keep cooking.
The only key tip I have is to brown that shank as well as you can. It is a hard shape to brown evenly, but do what you can. Browning is the key flavour base for any protein that’s slow cooked in a braising liquid, like Beef Stew, Pot Roast, Chicken Stew. If you ever see a slow cooked stew recipe that doesn’t call for browning the meat before slow cooking, proceed with caution!
I love slow cooking meat on the bone. Lamb Shanks, Beef Short Ribs and Osso Buco – better flavour more succulent!
About this Slow Cooked Lamb Shank Recipe
Lamb shanks are ideal slow roasted or braised. This is a braised version, and I’ve chosen a classic red wine sauce as the braising liquid.
The red wine sauce is super simple to make but after hours of slow cooking, it transforms into an incredible rich, deeply flavoured sauce that’s silky and glossy, and looks totally posh-restauranty.
Just a quick note on the wine – I do not use expensive wines for slow cooking. I truly believe from the bottom of my heart that even the snobbiest of all food snobs would not be able to tell the difference if you made this with a discount end-of-bin $5 bottle or a $50 bottle. (And the New York Times agrees….)
Maybe you could tell the difference using a $100 bottle. But that’s not within my budget….
Non alcoholic sub for wine?
The wine is a key flavour for the broth in this recipe. However, if you cannot consume alcohol, substitute the wine with the following: 1.5 cups beef broth LOW SODIUM + 1 cup water. + 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce. Beef has a stronger deeper flavour than chicken so will be more suited to being the sub for wine.
This is one of those recipes that truly is terrific to make in the oven, stove, slow cooker or pressure cooker, as long as its started on the stove to brown the shanks and saute the onion etc. Right now, being winter here in Sydney, I choose the oven so it keeps my house nice and warm! – Nagi x
More slow cooked fall-apart meat
I’m a big fan of slow cooked meats!!
Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks with Red Wine Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 lamb shanks , around 13 oz / 400g each (Note 1)
- 1 tsp each salt and pepper
- 2 - 3 tbsp olive oil , separated
- 1 cup onion , finely diced (brown, yellow or white)
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 cup carrot , finely diced (Note 2)
- 1 cup celery , finely diced (Note 2)
- 2 1/2 cups / 625 ml red wine , full bodied (good value wine, not expensive! Note 3)
- 28 oz / 800g can crushed tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cups / 500 ml chicken stock, low sodium (or water)
- 5 sprigs of thyme (preferably tied together), or 2 tsp dried thyme
- 2 dried bay leaves (or 4 fresh)
To Serve:
- Mashed potato, polenta or pureed cauliflower
- Fresh thyme leaves, optional garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F/180C.
- Pat the lamb shanks dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy based pot over high heat. Sear the lamb shanks in 2 batches until brown all over, about 5 minutes.
- Remove lamb onto a plate and drain excess fat (if any) from the pot.
- Turn the heat down to medium low. Heat remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil in the same pot, if needed. Add the onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes.
- Add carrot and celery. Cook for 5 minutes until onion is translucent and sweet.
- Add the red wine, chicken stock, crushed tomato, tomato paste, thyme and bay leaves. Stir to combine.
- Place the lamb shanks into the pot, squeezing them in to fit so they are mostly submerged. (Note 1)
- Turn stove up, bring to a simmer. Cover, then transfer to the oven for 2 hours (see notes for other cook methods).
- Remove from oven, remove lid, then return to the oven for another 30 minutes (so 2 1/2 hours in total). Check to ensure lamb is tender - if not, cover and keep cooking. Ideal is tender meat but still holding onto bone.
- Remove lamb onto plate and keep warm. Pick out and discard bay leaves and thyme.
- Strain the sauce into a bowl, pressing to extract all sauce out of the veggies (Note 5 for repurposing the veggies). Pour strained sauce back into pot. Bring to simmer over medium heat and reduce slightly to a syrupy consistency (see video) - I rarely need to. Taste then add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve the lamb shanks on mashed potato or cauliflower puree with plenty of sauce! Garnish with thyme leaves if desired.
Recipe Notes:
8. Nutrition per serving. This is conservative - it doesn't take into account fat trimmed from shanks or discarded fat. Also assumes all sauce is consumed which it probably won't be. Originally published August 2015, updated with new photos, video and a slightly refined recipe. Previously the base recipe said to blitz the sauce at the end. It looks much posher and actually does taste nicer just to strain it. 🙂
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
And I stuck my tongue right back at him….
Wow, this looks so delicious. Thank you very much for your receipt. I hope I will do it right.
I hope you love it!
Really enjoyed but found the gravy far to runny yet followed as stated, any suggestions? Also can u freeze any left over gravy?
Unreal! And I’ve eaten a lot of shanks.
We placed ours in the slow cooker for 9 hours.
Awesome to hear Ali!
Hello Nagi I have just followed every step and is in oven 2 hours . I’m not the best cook . Check after 2 hours and put on for another 30 mins ? It’s smelling great 👍
Hi there! Is the slow cooker supposed to be on low or high? I haven’t use my slow cooker is years.
Hi Julie, it’s all in the recipe notes – slow cook on low. I hope you love it!
Hi . Can I used lamb chops coz i dont have lamb shank. Thank you
You sure can, they won’t take as long so just keep an eye on them until they are fork tender – N x
Hi Nagi, can’t wait to try this 🙂
Btw, right at the top of the page you link to “Pork Braised Lamb Shanks” when I think you meant “Port…” – just thought you might want to know so you can fix it.
Oh good spotting!!! Thanks so much I’ll fix it now – Pork on the brain 😂
Hi Nagi, I am making this for dinner, it is in the slow cooker even as I write. Question, what size is your casserole dish so I can buy similar? This way I know that cooking vessel size will suit your recipes…oh yes well I do make a few of your devine food.🙄. Thanks for sharing. And by the way if I still lived in Sydney I would be down at the dog park sitting next to old matey hoping for some left overs. I love how you do that, so kind.
Hi Risky, mine is a 24″ pot, it really depends on how many people you’re cooking for though! 26″ is a good size for 4-6 people ❤️
Nagi, thank you for this wonderful recipe. Made it on Sunday and it was excellent! Will make again for sure!
Awesome Janice, thanks for letting me know!
Oh Nagi!! I’ve just cooked your lamb shanks in red wine. Absolutely delicious!! Thank you so much. Love all your recipes. Lasagna, fried rice Singapore noodles beef tacos. Simple instructions and always delicious results. You’re amazing!
That’s great Leah!!!
Hi Nagi. My old computer packed up and I lost all my nice recipes. Is it possible to send them to me again?
Hi Veronica, all my recipes can be found on my website 😊
Hi, when the pot goes into the oven doen the oven temp stay at 180 Degr ?
thanks for the great recipe…
Hi Johann, yes the oven stays at 180. Love to know what you think of them!
Hi Nagi,
I am making this on Sunday but am i able to sear the shanks the night before and leave in the sauce till sunday morning and then put everything in the slow cooker? would that be ok as i’m going to have to wake up early on sunday morning to slow cook them for 8 hours….so thought if i do the searing part first on saturday night all i have to do is put them in sunday
Hi Sue-ellen, I don’t see why not! I hope you love them, let me know how it all goes ❤️
Thanks so much!! I can’t wait to make them #yum!!!
love you and all your recipes seriously NEVER fails me!!
Hi Nagi I forgot to let you know how it was ..my husband said i outdid myself and tops everything I’ve ever made 😂 so I was pretty pleased with myself . The meat literally fell off the bone was the most heavenly delicious winter meal ever ! Thank you so much! 💙💙
As usual excellent…I doubled the sauce just to have leftovers.
Great idea Jenni, I like the way you think!
Hi Nagi – i absolutely love your recipes. Can i ask a question? If i was halving this recipe to cook it for just the two of us, is it ok to halve all the ingredients, or does that reduce the liquid too much?
Hi Annette, you can halve the recipe but yes, keep an eye on the liquids as you don’t want the pot to dry out – you may need to add a little more. N x
Yummo!
This was easy to make and turned out beautifully. Myself and two friends enjoyed it. I would reduce the liquid next time (stove top) as I found there was much more than needed.
I’m so glad you loved it, you could always reduce the liquids if you prefer but you can never have enough sauce in my books!! 😂
okay so third recipe made from your website, these were insanely good! so tender 🙂 your recipes are quickly becoming staples
That’s so great to hear Jayne!
Hi,
I am just making this for tomorrow’s lunch (it is 10 pm here). Should I leave it overnight in the fridge or in room temperature?
The recipe is great btw, tried it already and for tomorrow I am also making your ribs and sticky dates pudding so I am realy loving your recipes.
Greetings from Croatia.
Always in the fridge!