Slow and Low Lamb Shanks and Chocolate (Cordero Chukulati) - Chef Recipe by Martin Morales

Ingredients

2 Tbs olive oil, plus extra for roasting
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 panca chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped, or 1 tbsp panca chilli paste
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
200 ml red wine
300 ml lamb or beef stock
1/2 bunch of coriander, finely chopped
1 star anise
4 small lamb shanks (about 200 g each on the bone)
1 large squash, bulbous part sliced into 4 rounds
15 g dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)
2 dried chestnuts, crumbled, to serve
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole over a medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and add the red onion, celery, carrot, chilli or chilli paste and garlic and sauté for about 10 minutes until the onion has softened. Add the red wine, lamb or beef stock and coriander, increase the heat and bring to the boil. Boil for 2 minutes to cook out the wine a little, then season with salt and pepper.

Add the star anise, then the lamb shanks to the pan and reduce the heat to low so that the liquid is very gently simmering. Cover
the pan and cook for about 1ó hours, turning the shanks over regularly so that they cook evenly, until the meat is very tender. Meanwhile, sprinkle the squash discs with a little salt and olive oil and roast in a preheated oven (180°C/gas mark 4) for 30 minutes, or until golden and tender. Keep warm.

Remove the shanks from the casserole and set aside to keep warm. Discard the star anise, then simmer the sauce, uncovered,
for about 5 minutes until well reduced to a syrupy consistency, then stir in the chocolate. When the chocolate has melted, remove
the casserole from the heat and use a stick blender to blitz the sauce a little, leaving it with plenty of texture.

To serve, put 1 shank on each of 4 dinner plates. Pour equal amounts of the sauce over each shank and sprinkle with the crumbled chestnuts. Serve with a roasted squash disc on the side.

Credits: This is an edited extract from Andina by Martin Morales published by Quadrille RRP $45 and is available in stores nationally.

Photo Credits: David Loftus.