Osso Bucco

Osso Bucco or "Awesome Bucco," as my husband calls it (he is such a geek and is going to kill me!) is just that, truly awesome for a few reasons; it's painlessly easy to make, it calls for an inexpensive cut of meat and it is so, so delicious. Osso bucco is an Italian dish that is made in the same manner as a stew. Meaning you brown the meat, throw in a little liquid like wine and stock and braise the meat until it falls apart. The only thing you really need to make osso bucco is time. The prep is minimal and the cooking process is low maintenance but it's the cooking time that brings out the flavours of this dish with the marrow of the bone being responsible for much of the fantastic flavour. And of course, like all braised dishes, it's even better the next day so make lots because you'll want to eat it for days.

Recipe from Giada De Laurentiis:
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 dry bay leaf
2 whole cloves
Cheesecloth
Kitchen twine, for bouquet garni and tying the veal shanks
3 whole veal shanks (about 1 pound per shank), trimmed (can use beef shanks in lieu of veal shanks)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
All purpose flour, for dredging
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 small onion, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 small carrot, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 stalk celery, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon zest

Directions:

1. Place the rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and cloves into cheesecloth and secure with twine. This will be your bouquet garni.
2. For the veal shanks, pat dry with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Veal shanks will brown better when they are dry. Secure the meat to the bone with the kitchen twine. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper. Dredge the shanks in flour, shaking off excess.
3. In a large Dutch oven pot, heat vegetable oil until smoking. Add tied veal shanks to the hot pan and brown all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove browned shanks and reserve.
4. In the same pot, add the onion, carrot and celery. Season with salt at this point to help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Saute until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Return browned shanks to the pan and add the white wine and reduce liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add the bouquet garni and 2 cups of the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pan and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Check every 15 minutes, turning shanks and adding more chicken stock as necessary. The level of cooking liquid should always be about 3/4 the way up the shank.
5. Carefully remove the cooked shanks from the pot and place in decorative serving platter. Cut off the kitchen twine and discard.
6. Remove and discard bouquet garni from the pot.
7. Pour all the juices and sauce from the pot over the shanks. Garnish with chopped parsley and lemon zest.