Slow Cooker Spiced Lamb Shanks

 

This recipe was updated on 21 July 2013. Some instructions and ingredient quantities were changed, and metric measurements added.

I usually don’t make this dish in the summer (even though it’s been a cool summer this year), as this is more of a Fall or Winter meal, but lamb shanks were on sale and they’re one of my favorite ingredients. I previously made this dish with red wine or port but decided instead to try a Chardonnay this time, and I was pleased with the results (you can just as easily use chicken stock). I also got the idea to add lemon to the dish from this recipe that was featured in the Wall Street Journal. However, what really makes this dish tasty are the spices – cumin, fennel, coriander, allspice, and pepper - which are toasted before being ground (and then adding turmeric). The spice mix would also work for pork (a future recipe).

The other piece of information came from America’s Test Kitchen. They use Minute Tapioca (made by Kraft) to thicken sauces in a slow cooker. They found that tapioca starch holds up well to the long cooking time in slow cooker, whereas other thickeners, such as corn starch, break down and don’t thicken. Minute Tapioca can be found in any grocery store, but it’s pretty expensive when you compare it to regular tapioca starch, which is available in Asian markets. They both thicken the liquid equally as well, so I use regular tapioca starch.

The Lamb Shanks can either be browned in a wok or Dutch oven, or in a barbeque (smoked with hickory and rosemary) before adding the shanks to the slow cooker. The lamb shanks can be browned the night before cooking.

Enjoy!

Spice Ingredients

1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Cumin, toasted whole and then ground
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Fennel, toasted whole and then ground
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Coriander, toasted whole and then ground
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Allspice, toasted whole and then ground
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Peppercorns, toasted whole and then ground
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Turmeric powder

 

Ingredients

2-4	2-4	Lamb shanks
		Salt and pepper to taste
6 Tbs.	90 ml.	Lentils
6 cloves	6 cloves	Garlic, crushed in a garlic press
4 Tbs.	60 ml.	Soy sauce
3 Tbs.	45 ml.	Tapioca starch (see notes)
1	1	Medium onion, diced
1 lb.	500 g.	Carrots, diced
1 lb.	500 g.	Daikon, diced
1 lb.	500 g.	Mushrooms, diced
750 ml.	750 ml.	White wine (1 bottle; I used Chardonnay) or chicken stock (see notes)
1	1	Lemon, juiced and rind put into slow cooker
		Mint leaves, for garnish (optional)

 

Equipment

14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan
6.5 qt.	6 L.	Slow cooker (crock pot)

 

Instructions

1. Toast the cumin, fennel, coriander, allspice, and peppercorns in a non-stick pan or wok until fragrant. Be careful not to burn the spices. Remove the toasted spices from the pan; allow the spices to cool before grinding in a spice or coffee grinder. The spices can be toasted the night before and then ground the day of use. Add the powdered turmeric to the ground spice mixture and mix together.
2. Add salt and pepper to the lamb shanks; set the lamb shanks aside.
3. Wash and dice the carrots, daikon, and mushrooms; set the vegetable aside.
4. Add the lentils, garlic crushed in a garlic press, soy sauce, and tapioca starch to the slow cooker. Mix the ingredients together to evenly distribute the tapioca starch.
5. Brown the lamb shanks in a wok or Dutch oven. Deglaze the pan with white wine and add the liquid together with the lamb shanks into the slow cooker. Alternatively, you can brown the lamb shanks in the barbeque, smoking the shanks with rosemary and hickory (or some other wood). This can be done the night before.
6. Add the ground spices to the slow cooker, covering the lamb shanks.
7. Brown the carrots, daikon, onion, and mushrooms individually before adding each ingredient to the slow cooker (in that order). Deglaze the pan with white wine after browning the last vegetable (mushrooms), adding the liquid to the slow cooker.
8. Add the rest of the 750 ml. bottle of white wine to cover the lamb shanks in the slow cooker. You can also use chicken stock instead of wine.
9. Halve the lemon and squeeze the juice from both halves into the slow cooker making sure no seeds are added. Submerge the lemon rinds into the liquid in the slow cooker.
10. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for up to 8 hours.
11. After cooking is complete, remove the lemon rinds and discard. Remove the contents of the slow cooker and defat the liquid. The bones can be removed from the lamb shanks before serving if desired. Add mint leaves as a garnish before serving (optional) and serve with steamed rice.

 

Notes

1. Tapioca starch is used to thicken the liquid and holds up well in a slow cooker. I originally got this information from America’s Test Kitchen and they use Minute Tapioca made by Kraft. I’ve used both the Minute Tapioca and plain tapioca starch to thicken liquids in a slow cooker, and both work equally as well. You can find Minute Tapioca in any grocery store and tapioca starch at your local Asian supermarket. The tapioca starch is much more inexpensive than the Minute Tapioca. Corn starch and other thickeners will break down and not thicken during the long cooking times in a slow cooker.
2. A white wine (I used a Chardonnay) is used for the liquid in this dish, but you could easily use a red wine or port. If you don’t want to use wine, chicken stock works well also.