Marinade::
Combine marinade ingredients and bring to a simmer for a few minutes. Cool. Add shanks, vaccuum seal and marinate 24 hours or longer. Reserve marinade liquid.

On the day:: 3.5 hours out::
Brown the lamb well on all sides in oil and butter for 10 minutes. Add to a glass baking dish. Add garlic cloves, marinade, stock, wine and oysters. Cover with foil and cook at 165° for 70 minutes.

Brown off the shallot onions, carrots and champignons for 4 minutes in butter. Remove the baking dish and just disturb and turn the lamb shanks. Add carrots and champignons. Cover and cook at 165° for 60 minutes. Just disturb and add shallot onions. Cook 40 minutes longer and it is done. Remove the shanks and shape using cling wrap.

Strain cooking juices to seperate the vegetables and gravy. Reduce the gravy in a saucepan for 10 minutes. Add potato flour if required to get a thicker gravy. Season to taste. Add back in vegetables.

Plate shanks over mashed potato and cover with sauce. Serve with peas, beans or sprouts on the side
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Stock::
Roast the bones, onion and carrots for 90 minutes at 190°.
Transfer to a 7L pot with Lemon Juice. Cover with 5 Litres of water. Bring to a simmer and transfer to the oven at 120° for 10 hours with the lid on. Can be overnight. 

Remove the bones and strain out the solids. Transfer between large bowls and back to 7L pot. Add Tabasco sauce, Vegemite, Tomato paste, Coriander seeds, Thyme, Paprika, Pepper and Cummin. Low boil and reduce by a third to about 2 litres. 90 minutes. Cool rapidly and then refrigerate. Remove the solid fat and decant into usable quantities. Freeze for future use.

Can you say making your own stock from beef bones is better than supermarket stock. The difference in the final outcome is so slight. But once you have done this you are spoilt to how good, good can be. This stock is thick and gelatinous and really does make a better gravy. No flour required.

4 Lamb shanks (frenched)
Marinade:: 300ml Red wine,
1 tsp Salt,
1 Tbs Honey,
4 cloves Garlic

10 Garlic Cloves whole
1 cup Beef Stock
1 cup Red wine / Marsala
Marinade juice
1 Canned oysters

Carrots Champignons Shallot Onion
Potato Flour

Stock::
2.5 kg Beef Bones
1 Onion, 2 Carrots,
2 Tbs Lemon Juice
1 Tbs Tabasco Sauce,
1 Tbs Vegemite
2 Tbs Tomato paste,
1 Tbs Coriander
2 Tbs Thyme dried,
1 Tbs Paprika
1 Tbs Cummin,
1 Tbs Cracked Pepper.
And whatever else except salt.

This is a poor quality piece of meat that has managed to top restaurant and pub menus around the world. How! I have only ever ordered it once off a menu and it was totally dissapointing. But you know, I keep seeing these foodie posts and mag articles about how good it is. I pop into one of my favourite butchers and he says he has on special Victorian Lamb shanks that are fantastic. Ok, lets give it a go.

The people I cooked this for thought it was fantastic. And it was a good stew. The flavours and texture of the gravy were right on point. Couldn't have been better. The lamb was gelatinous and tender. Great. The mash, super silky full of butter and cream. But still a cheap cut of meat stewed on mashed potatoes with a gravy.

An idea is to wrap the meat in cling wrap and stand it upright leaning against something. As it cools keep shaping down into a more ball shaped end on the bone. The oysters give the gravy real depth. Great ingredient in any stewing gravy. This stock recipe will ruin you from ever using supermarket stock again.