Armour's Signature Culinary Creation - PERFECT for Winter!

Introducing...

the Chef, on the left,

and

the Happy Diner, on the Right.

Mario Batali’s Osso Bucco

~as prepared by Armour
~with notes from Holly

There are basically three major parts to this recipe. The Tomato Sauce, which can be a stand-alone sauce and is great for spaghetti, or other pasta dishes (oh, my Heavens, YES! That is so true! Save what's left over from the night of the dinner, and use it for spaghetti the next day!) ; the Osso Bucco itself, which is just awesome; finally, the Gremolata, which is more of a garnish. Hereafter referred to as “silage” due to Dad’s famous description the first time I made this!

Start out with a beer. Or, in Hol’s case – a glass of Champs. Indeed. This is a long recipe…and you need to be relaxed. If you have to do the fresh thyme yourself, you might consider something stronger, (pictoral evidence to follow...) but then make sure you do the thyme the day before. It does you no good to prepare all of that thyme, only to fall asleep at the counter and forget to cook the rest of the meal….

Prepare the tomato sauce first. You’ll need it for the osso bucco, and it can simmer all day anyway.

BASIC TOMATO SAUCE

1 Spanish onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice. A big Vidalia works well here too
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced. You can always plus this up….no such thing as too much garlic
3 oz virgin olive oil. Or, say “EVOO” with a raspy, too-cutesy-Rachael-Ray type voice
4 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or 2 Tbsp dried leaves). Here’s where the booze come in. I would recommend being heavily sedated before getting to this. However, I would stick with the fresh thyme instead of dried. It just tastes better.

I'm sorry. I just have to add these pictures, here:

1/2 carrot, shredded finely
2 28-oz cans of tomatoes crushed and mixed. I prefer one can whole, and one can crushed. You kind of have to bust up the whole ones, but it gives the sauce a nice chunk. They’ll break down in the Osso Bucco.
Salt to taste

To Make Tomato Sauce: Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until translucent but not browned. Add thyme and carrot, cook 5 minutes over medium heat and add tomatoes. Bring to boil, lower heat to just bubbling and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt to taste and set aside. Again, you can simmer this all day – but be careful: you don’t want to lose all the liquid. If you do, you’ll wind up with a large pot of – very flavorful – paste.

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OSSO BUCCO

4 veal shanks, cut three inches thick (about 3 1/2 to 4 pounds). If you’re looking for more marrow – get the ones with the bigger bones. (Dad and I love to scrape out the cooked, buttery marrow and spread it on a mouthful of the polenta that Armour serves with this dish. It is meltingly delicious!)
Salt and pepper
6 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 med. carrot, chopped into 1/4-inch-thick coins
1 small Spanish onion, chopped into 1/2-inch dice
1 celery stalk, chopped into 1/4-inch slices
2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme leaves. Hopefully you did enough for both the tomato sauce and this. If not….hit the liquor cabinet again.

(And I'll just add another picture of this process...here):

Oh, maybe one more...so you get the full effect:

Do you SEE the woman I've become? This process equates to a descent into Madness, People.

ANYway...

2 cups Basic Tomato Sauce (recipe above)
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups dry white wine
1 recipe Silage (recipe follows)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Season the shanks all over with salt and pepper. In a heavy-bottomed 6 to 8 quart casserole, heat the olive oil until smoking. Le Creuset works the best….but if you have to use some other cooking vessel, make sure it will both hold heat and can go into the oven.

Place the shanks in the pan and brown all over, turning to get every surface, 12 to 15 minutes. This can be a pain in the neck (ahem. Edited by Holly, since this is a Family-Friendly website, after all...), as the shanks are generally round. Tough to get all “sides.” You will probably have to lean them against the sides of the pot and each other.

Remove the shanks and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium, and add the carrot, onion, celery and thyme leaves (!) and cook, stirring regularly, until golden brown and slightly softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Place shanks back into pan, making sure they are submerged at least halfway. Don’t forget to add any of the juices that may have appeared on the plate while they were resting. If shanks are not covered halfway, add more stock.

Cover the pan with tight-fitting lid of aluminum foil. The foil is probably not necessary. (At least if you’re using the Le Creuset…) (So, if you need an excuse to buy a Le Crueset pot...)

Place in oven for 2 to 2 1/2 hours and cook until meat is nearly falling off the bone. I’ve even let them go for slightly over 3 hours, and they only get better!

Remove the casserole from the oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving with Gremolata.
*This can essentially be a meal unto itself, but for sides – I would recommend something that complements the sauce. Rice is good, but the herbed, creamy baked polenta is a great accompaniment. (It certainly is! Eat rounded forkfuls with a bit of marrow for an amazing flavor!) Even a chunk of good French or sourdough bread would go great with it. It is beef, but I happen to think a good white wine goes well. If red is the preferred wine – something on the lighter side. Pinot Noir would be better than a Cabernet Sauvignon, for example. Just my two cents.

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SILAGE (Our father's name for "GREMOLATA" HA!)

1/4 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted under the broiler until dark brown. I like to just do it in a dry sauté pan because you can keep a closer eye on them. But hey, I’m no Mario Batali…
Zest of 1 lemon

Mix the parsley, pine nuts and lemon zest loosely in a small bowl. Set aside until ready to serve.
Yield: 1/2 cup

I LOVE Gremolata! It's a cool, clean-tasting accompaniment to this lovely slow-cooked meal.

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Oh, yes - and here is the happy result for all your efforts! :)