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Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce

By:Nagi
1,030 Comments
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Lamb shanks are the king of all lamb cuts!! Slow cooked until meltingly tender in a  rich, deeply flavoured red wine sauce, this recipe is worthy of fine dining restaurants yet is completely straightforward to make. Serve it over creamy mashed potato with a side of peas or sautéed spinach, with crusty bread to mop your bowl clean!

* Here for the cookbook version? Find it here -> the elegant Restaurant Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce.

Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce in a cast iron pot, fresh off the stove ready to be served

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:

Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce served on creamy mashed potato, ready to be eaten

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.

You literally cannot overcook lamb shanks.Leave it in for an hour too long, and the meat is still succulent and juicy. The worst that will happen is that the meat falls off the bone when you go to serve it.

And if you pull it out too early and the meat isn’t 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!

Preparation steps for Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce

I love slow cooking meat on the bone. Lamb Shanks, Beef Short Ribs and Osso Buco – better flavour more succulent!

What are lamb shanks?

If you’re new to lamb shanks, here’s a rundown: lamb shanks are from the lower leg of lambs, and they are an inexpensive, tough cut of meat.

Because of this, lamb shanks need to be slow cooked – either braised or roasted – to break down the tough meat to soften into succulent tenderness.

The meat itself is full of flavour which adds to the flavour of the sauce.

BONUS: The marrow in the bone melts into the sauce, deepening the flavour and richness. We love freebies around here!!

Close up of Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce, showing how tender the meat is

Classic Red Wine Sauce for Lamb Shanks

Red wine sauce is a classic braising liquid for lamb shanks, with the rich deep flavours a natural pairing with the strong flavour of lamb.

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. So if you cannot consume alcohol, it is best to substitute with non-alcoholic red wine.

Please do not use more beef or chicken stock/broth, even if it’s low sodium. This sauce has amazing flavour in it because it is massively concentrated down (essentially into a jus). So if you use more stock then it will end up too salty.

Overhead photo of Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce served over creamy mashed potato with a side of peas, ready to be eaten

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

Slow cooked lamb shanks
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Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce served on creamy mashed potato, ready to be eaten

Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce

Author: Nagi
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 3 hours 30 minutes
Main
Western
4.95 from 281 votes
Servings4
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Recipe video above. A classic way to prepare shanks, these are slow cooked in a deeply flavoured red wine sauce until they are meltingly tender. You can't taste the red wine at the end, it completely transforms into a rich sauce. Make this in the oven, on your stove or even in a slow cooker – instructions provided for all!
Note: This is my original lamb shanks recipe. There is also a more involved Restaurant-style red wine lamb shanks version in my cookbook which is more "fine-dining" style and involves an overnight marinade. See Note 7 for more information! 

Ingredients

  • 4 lamb shanks , around 13 oz / 400g each (Note 1)
  • 1 tsp EACH cooking/kosher salt and pepper
  • 2 – 3 tbsp olive oil , separated
  • 1 onion , finely diced (brown, yellow or white)
  • 3 garlic cloves , minced
  • 1 cup carrot , peeled, finely diced (Note 2)
  • 1 cup celery , finely diced (Note 2)
  • 2 1/2 cups red wine (full bodied (good value wine, not expensive! Note 3)
  • 800 g / 28oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 cups 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:

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types – fan and standard).
  • Season shanks – Pat the lamb shanks dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  • Brown – Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large 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.
  • Sauté aromatics – Turn the heat down to medium low. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same pot. Add the onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Add carrot and celery. Cook for 5 minutes until onion is translucent and sweet.
  • Braising liquid – Add the red wine, chicken stock, crushed tomato, tomato paste, thyme and bay leaves. Stir to combine.
  • Add shanks – Place the lamb shanks into the pot, squeezing them in to fit so they are mostly submerged. (Note 1)
  • Oven 2 hours covered – Turn stove up, bring liquid to a simmer. Cover, then transfer to the oven for 2 hours (see notes for other cook methods).
  • Uncovered 30 minutes – Remove lid, then return to the oven for another 30 minutes (so 2 1/2 hours in total). Check to ensure lamb meat is ultra tender – if not, cover and keep cooking. Ideal is tender meat but still just holding onto bone.
  • Remove lamb onto plate and keep warm. Pick out and discard bay leaves and thyme.
  • Sauce – 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. If needed, bring to a 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 (Note 5 on sauce taste).
  • Serve the lamb shanks on mashed potato or cauliflower puree with plenty of sauce! Garnish with thyme leaves if desired.

Recipe Notes:

1. Lamb Shanks – sizes vary considerably so make sure you get ones that will fit in your cooking vessel! 4 x 400g/13oz lamb shanks fits snugly in a 26cm/11″ diameter Chasseur dutch oven which is what I use. They don’t need to be completely submerged, just as long as most of the meaty end is mostly submerged, that’s fine. If you don’t have a pot large enough, you can switch to a baking dish for the slow cooking part, and cover with a double layer of foil if you don’t have a lid for it. You can also ask your butcher to cut the shaft so it bends if you are concerned, or to trim it slightly.
Cook time – 350-400g shanks should cook to “fall apart tender” but still holding onto bone in 2.5 hrs at 180°C/350°F. It can take up to 3 hrs, so to err on the side of caution re: dinner timing, give yourself 3 hours oven time. Shanks are the sort of thing that can sit around for ages and stay warm (keep covered in pot) and the flavour just gets even better. In fact, if you are cooking to impress, cook it the day before then reheat to serve – flavour will develop overnight, like with any stew!
2. Onion, carrot and celery is the “holy trinity” of slow cooking, creating a beautiful flavour base for the sauce. It’s not a deal breaker to exclude the carrot and celery, but it does give the sauce an extra edge.
3. Wine – Use a good value full bodied red wine, like cabaret sauvignon or merlot. Shiraz is ok too. No need to use expensive wine for slow cooked recipes like this (and the New York Times agrees). Use discount end of bin specials (I get mine from Dan Murphey’s). Pinots not suitable, too light. 99% of the alcohol in the red wine evaporates during cooking. The sauce does not taste winey at all, it completely transforms.
Non alcoholic sub: 1 1/2 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.
4. Most of the alcohol in the red wine will evaporate during this step but not completely – it will finish evaporating during the slow cooking. The sauce does not taste winey at all, it completely transforms.
5. Sauce options: The other option is to blitz the sauce using a sick blender. The sauce will be thicker, and you’ll have more of it (leftovers great tossed through pasta). This is what I used to do, but nowadays I prefer to strain the sauce because I like how glossy and rich it is – this is how restaurants serve it. You could also skip straining or blitzing, it just means you get little veg lumps in the sauce. All are tasty options, it mainly comes down to visual.
TIP: If you strain the sauce, keep the veggies etc in the strainer to make a terrific sauce, they are loaded with flavour even though all juice is squeezed out of them. What I do is make a basic tomato sauce with garlic, onion, canned tomato and water. Then I blitz that with the veggies. Use it to make a killer pasta or lasagna!!
Sour sauce? Sounds like there might’ve been issues with your canned tomatoes (poor quality = overly sour, good quality = sweet). Add a touch of honey or sugar, simmer for few minutes. Also, you didn’t rush the carrots/celery sautéing step did you?? Cooking them for 5 minutes sweetens them! 🙂
6. OTHER COOK OPTIONS:
Slow cooker – Follow recipe to step 7. Bring sauce to simmer, scrape bottom of pot to get all brown bits into the liquid. Place shanks in slow cooker, add the sauce. Cook on low for 8 hours. Remove shanks, strain and reduce sauce to desired thickness on stove (if you blitz per Note 5, you won’t need to reduce).
Pressure Cooker – Follow Slow Cooker steps, cook for 40 minutes on high. Release pressure according to manufacturer directions. Stove – to cook this on the stove, cook for about 2 hours on low, ensuring that you check it at 1 hour then every 30 minutes thereafter to ensure there is enough braising liquid (because liquid evaporates faster on the stove) and the bottom of the pot isn’t catching. Turn the lamb shanks twice. You won’t get the brown crust, but the flavour is the same!
7. Original recipe vs cookbook version – The original lamb shanks recipe is from 2015 which was improved in 2018. There is also a very elegant red wine lamb shanks recipe in my cookbook which is an elegant fine-dining version.
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.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 624cal (31%)Carbohydrates: 31g (10%)Protein: 42g (84%)Fat: 25g (38%)Saturated Fat: 5g (31%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 117mg (39%)Sodium: 1260mg (55%)Potassium: 1590mg (45%)Fiber: 6g (25%)Sugar: 16g (18%)Vitamin A: 6022IU (120%)Vitamin C: 26mg (32%)Calcium: 133mg (13%)Iron: 7mg (39%)
Keywords: Lamb Shanks, red wine sauce for lamb shanks
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

Originally published August 2015, updated with new photos, video and a slightly refined recipe in 2018. Previously the base recipe said to blitz the sauce at the end. It looks much posher (ie fine dining style) and actually does taste nicer just to strain it because the sauce stays glossy – if you blitz, sauce becomes more matte and is not as smooth. 🙂 Recipe then further improved when it was decided to include this lamb shanks in my debut cookbook Dinner – that “restaurant” version is exclusive to my cookbook!

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I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

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1,030 Comments

    • Nagi says

      Nope! it’s for a standard oven though, so turn it down a bit if you have a fan or convection oven 🙂

      Reply

  2. Marg says

    5 stars
    Made this last night, on stove top then oven. Delicious rich sauce and very tender shanks. I used cask red wine (“inexpensive” rather than “cheap” hahahha). It worked very well. Once again a roaring success Nagi! Thanks for sharing this recipe. Kind regards, Marg.

    Reply

  3. Lulu says

    4 stars
    Thanks for a great recipe. I used it in my slow cooker so only used 1/2 the tomatoes. At the end I reduced some of the cooking liquid and it made a beautiful sauce. Delicious.

    Reply

  4. Bakang Seago says

    Hello Nagi

    How do you make the sauce? I’ve already started cooking but now I can’t find anywhere you talk about the sauce.
    Please help me asap

    Reply

  5. Jan says

    This was easy and absolutely delicious! I was first introduced to lamb shanks at a wonderful little restaurant in Mountain View, CA. Go there every time I go back for work. Living so far away now, I decided to look for a recipe and this fit the bill. Excellent recipe with awesome flavor! It’s on my tried and true recipe file on Pinterest. ☺️

    Reply

    • Nagi says

      I love hearing than Jan!!! I absolutely love that you went hunting for a recipe that reminds you of that restaurant’s 🙂 And so I’m extra pleased this delivered for you! N xx

      Reply

  6. Kerry says

    5 stars
    Hi nagi i was looking for a good non experience shank recipes thanks i sounds amazing.looked a lot of your recipes only just found your blog tonight love it looking forward to cooking them and thanks for the cook books.keep up your good work. Kerry

    Reply

  7. Shari Tracey says

    5 stars
    Hello from Texas! I made your lamb shanks recipe today. They were wonderful! I enjoyed following your instructions and the pictures are lovely. I halved the recipe to serve 2 and served it over arborio rice with fresh spinach. Yummy! Yes, it rendered more sauce than needed. I froze the extra sauce . I want to use it to cook lamb meatballs or something like that. Thank you!

    Reply

  8. Josephine B says

    Hi Nagi, I’m doing this recipe this coming weekend for family to celebrate my birthday and can’t wait as Lamb Shanks are my favourite meal. I’m also please to see where you added in note 5 to cool down the puree before placing in the blender as only this week we saw on TV where in the States it was shown where two people used their “Bullet” with hot food in it and the “Bullet” exploded, burning them quite seriously. I would have thought that people would have realised the consequences in doing this. I myself have known this and not be experience, but just common sense, so thank you for being such the thoughtful person you are. I know we’re going to enjoy these as we’ve enjoyed so many other recipes of yours. I’m a little at odd ends though this time as you didn’t give us anything on Dozer or is it that Dozer got the shanks. Ha! Ha!

    Reply

    • Nagi says

      You know what?? I learned the HARD WAY about hot food in blenders when I ended up with pumpkin soup all over my kitchen!! Literally, it hit the CEILING!!! Actually, this recipe was from pre “Life of Dozer” being a regular in my posts! One day I will republish this recipe with a video and Dozer will most certainly make it in the post!! And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! I hope you have a wonderful one! 🙂 N xx

      Reply

    • Nagi says

      Errr….thanks Tuba. There’s 182 comments on this recipe and I’ve never had anyone say they did not enjoy it or that it was not nice made with cheap wine. You must have a much more refined palette than me, my family and my readers and my friends! 🙂

      Reply

      • Tuba says

        In reply: A good recipe is made less good by “cheap” ingredients. If the wine makes no difference then don’t include wine. If the wine does make a difference then use good wine. Cheap ingredients, be it wine, spices, or main elements detract from the final flavor, or said another way, keep it from tasting as good as it could. Good ingredients add to the flavor. You work on a recipe, you craft it, you prefect it and you select quality ingredients but then you toss in crappy wine and somehow think it makes no difference? Cheap wine is cheap wine for a reason: Poor quality… and somehow you think that does not affect the favor of your final dish? A compromise is to tell the readers to use their favorite red wine as the base. That way you avoid “cheap” even if it is but it will taste “good” to the consumer.

        Reply

        • Nagi says

          Hi Tuba! Thanks for offering your opinion! I still stand firm by my opinion that the majority of people in this big wide world do not have a refined enough palette to recognise the difference between good value and expensive wine used in slow cooked dishes like this, as long as they use the right sort of wine i.e. full bodied etc. Professional chefs should be able to tell. And I do believe it makes a difference for things like red wine sauce and faster cooked things. But not for things simmered for hours. You must have a very refined palette like the top tier professional chefs and I envy you for it! I’m just another home cook! 🙂 Thank you again for proffering your opinion! N x

          Reply

          • Barb Marriott says

            5 stars
            My husband made the shanks yesterday in the crock pot and it was fantastic.
            He googled ‘lamb shanks recipe’ and he was over the moon when he saw Nagi has a recipe (of course she does my darling, she’s Nagi).

            As with all your recipes we had all the ingredients at home including the red wine we drink regularly……Big & Bold – $5 from First Choice Liquor, I recommend this wine to everyone including my CEO who now enjoys it.

            The lamb was so moist and tender, the sauce complimented the meat perfectly.

            Thanks again for another winning recipe Nagi!

          • Nagi says

            😂 You make me smile like a fool with messages like this! Thank you x a million! N xx

          • Keith says

            Just to comment on this, cheap wine does not mean bad wine.

            I am bothered that Tuba decided to well.. just be a jerk in the first comment rather than explain their thought process that came out later.

            I get what Tuba is saying, but talk to any wine pro and they will rattle off a list of INCREDIBLE wines in the $8-15 range that have incredible flavor and surprising complexity for the price point and slow cooking it will impart some wonderful flavor into the dish. Maybe Tuba feels strongly that 2 buck chuck or Manischevitz won’t be good for this and I agree but if they are hung up on cheap vs good but budget friendly there is a better way to express it.

            Nage, you also qualify that a cheaper wine works well with this and mention that for some steak dishes a more expensive wine is necessary. I will be making your dish tonight and I won’t be using any of my vintage Bordeaux’s, Brunello’s, or Barolo’s for this dish. A simple sangiovese or younger grenache will do the trick for this.

          • Nagi says

            Hi Keith! You articulate my point much better than I do! I do hope you enjoy it 🙂 N x

  10. Natalie says

    5 stars
    Hi,

    Lovely recipe, me and my family really enjoyed it, I added a couple of lamb steaks to as only had 2 shanks and was feeding 3 people, kept it in for the same amount of time and it was delicious, thank u

    Reply

  11. Johan says

    5 stars
    I Just browned the shanks, made the sauce and it is all in the oven. I added 10ml. of brown sugar to the sauce (just my own taste). It taste and smells devine. Will update when it is all done and consumed. Thank you for a wonderful and descriptive recipe.

    Reply

  12. Brooke says

    I so want to try this for valentines day but this year it’s quite the busy day. I dont have a slow cooker to help me out. Could I do some prep beforehand, like searing the lamb?

    Thanks,
    Brooke

    Reply

    • Nagi says

      Hi Brooke! I think that will work fine – sear the lamb (still raw inside) then leave all in the fridge to simmer slowly later. 🙂

      Reply

  16. Matthew Benjamin Mickler says

    5 stars
    Hi Nagi. Such a beautiful presented menu and description. The Aesthetics are perfect.

    I wonder if you could help me. Unfortunately I wasnt able to get some lamb shanks in time BUT I picked up a lovely half lamb leg for me and the girlfriend for valentines day. It weighs 1.2kg (2.6lbs) I have a slow cooker and is it safe to assume I can do the same prep with the leg as I can do with the shanks but leave it for 6-8 hours on low?

    Im assuming that I can follow the same instructions?

    Regards

    Matt

    Reply

    • Nagi says

      Hi Matthew – I think that will work a treat! I’d say 8 hours on low. Just be aware that lamb leg is not as fatty as shanks so while it will get tender and juicy, it’s not quite the same as shanks. 🙂

      Reply

  18. Mishelle says

    5 stars
    Just made this tonight!! It was amazing! I followed the recipe exactly except for using extras lamb shank. I was cooking for adults and two young and hungry toddlers. There was nothing leftover. The men even ate the meat out of the marrow they thought it was so good. Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply

  20. Rod Bauer says

    5 stars
    Made this for guests Friday and it was very successfully received. The puree complimented the lamb very well. May add some cheese to it the next time. Used the leftover sauce and the meat from an extra shank with penne pasta for dinner Sunday. Fantastic! This has been moved to a regular spot. Thanks!

    Reply