Lamb Neck Osso Bucco, Pappardelle, Almond & Mint Gremolata

Photography Amber-Jayne Bain

	LAMB NECK OSSO BUCCO
	60ml vegetable oil
	1kg lamb neck, 4 pieces with the bones in
	100g guanciale or pancetta, diced
	60ml olive oil
	12 cloves garlic
	2 medium onions, cut into 1cm pieces
	2 carrots, cut into 1cm pieces
	750ml red wine
	440g canned crushed tomatoes
	1 litre chicken stock
	zest of 1 orange
	2 teaspoons dried oregano
	fresh pasta, to serve
	ALMOND & MINT GREMOLATA
	a handful of mint leaves
	a handful of flat-leafed parsley leaves
	1 clove garlic
	zest of 1 lemon
	½ cup toasted almonds

1.	Heat the oven to 160 ̊C.
2.	Heat the vegetable oil to a moderate-high heat in a large casserole dish.
3.	Add the lamb and season generously with salt and pepper, cooking until well-browned all over. You may need to do this in batches, transferring the necks to a deep roasting dish as you go.
4.	Add the guanciale to the casserole and fry until crisp.
5.	Turn the heat down and add the olive oil.
6.	Add the garlic, onions and carrot and cook until softened and aromatic (about 10 minutes), scraping up any browned bits of lamb that may have stuck to the pan.
7.	Pour in the wine, bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer for 3 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes and chicken stock.
8.	Stir in the orange zest along with the oregano. Cook for a further 5 minutes, until fragrant.
9.	Pour all of this over the lamb necks in the roasting dish, adding cold water if needed to cover the meat.
10.	Cover with foil and braise in the oven for about 3 hours, until the meat is falling off the bones.
11.	Remove the lamb from the oven and use a draining spoon to transfer the lamb pieces to a warm plate.
12.	Pour the sauce and vegetables into a large saucepan, skimming off as much surface fat as you can.
13.	Bring the sauce to a simmer and reduce until richly flavoured, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
14.	While the sauce reduces, shred the meat from the lamb necks, discarding the bones.
15.	Stir the meat back through the sauce and set to one side.
16.	Cook the pasta according to the package instructions.
17.	Drain and toss with a splash of olive oil.
18.	Serve the osso bucco on top of the pasta and sprinkle over the gremolata.
19.	ALMOND & MINT GREMOLATA
20.	Chop all the ingredients and mix them in a bowl just before serving.

Martin Bosley

Serves

Preparation

Cook

Ingredients

This is comfort food, Italian style. If you can’t obtain lamb necks, you can replace them with shanks. This recipe can be made ahead of time and reheated for about 30 minutes in a saucepan.

Instructions