Veal osso buco Milanese, a traditional Italian recipe for veal shanks slow cooked into a flavorful broth and finished with a pan sauce and gremolata.
Osso buco alla Milanese is traditionally served with saffron risotto, polenta pairs beautifully with is, I like to serve it with fettuccine or pappardelle pasta.
This osso buco recipe is cooked on the stove into a high sided frying pan, it can also be cooked into a crock pot.
First the veal shanks are seared on both sides, then they are cooked covered in broth for 35 minutes on one side and again 35 minutes on the other side or until fall of the bone tender, then a quick pan sauce is made, nothing too difficult in this delicious and flavorful recipe.
I like my osso buco slices rather thin like in Italy, no thicker than about 1 to 1.5 inches, that is when I can ask the butcher to cut them for me, in this case I count two pieces per person. When the veal shanks are already cut, they are generally much thicker, then I count one piece per person. I make a few cuts around in the connective tissues with kitchen shears to keep them flat while baking.
We eat the marrow spread on slices of toasted bread rubbed with garlic, so good!
For this recipe, the gremolata is a mixture of parsley and lemon zest (grated outer skin) added to the finished sauce.
Pair this delicious dish with an Italian red wine, Barbera is a wonderful red wine produced in Lombardy, region where Milan is located.
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4 pieces (About 48 oz. / 3 pounds / 1.4 kg) veal shanks
1 liter beef stock
1 medium onion, thinly chopped
1 tsp dry oregano or thyme
1 tsp flour
2 tbsp. butter
Salt and pepper to taste
A pinch of Cayenne
Gremolata:
Zest of ½ lemon (outer skin grated)
1 tbsp. chopped parsley
Some olive oil for cooking
Pat the veal shanks dry, with kitchen shears cut the connective tissues 4 or 5 times around each veal shank to prevent them from curling while cooking
Into a high sided frying pan or crock pot, heat some olive oil on medium/high, add the veal shanks and sear 3 minutes on each side, remove from the pan and set aside
Into the same pan, lower the heat to medium, add some olive oil if necessary, add the oregano and chopped onion, cook until translucent, lower the heat to medium/low, add the veal shanks, pour 1/2 liter of stock, cover with a lid and simmer gently for 35 minutes
Turn the veal shanks over delicately, don’t spill the marrow, add the rest of the stock, cover with the lid and simmer away for another 35 minutes, the meat should be fall off the bone tender, depending on the thickness of your veal shanks you might need to cook them 15 to 20 minutes more
Remove the veal shanks delicately from the pan and set aside
Add more broth or water if you need more sauce, add 1 tsp flour to the sauce and the butter, stir to incorporate, cook one minute on medium stirring constantly until the sauce thickens, taste and season with salt, pepper and Cayenne, sprinkle the lemon zest, put the veal shanks back into the pan, baste them with the sauce, sprinkle the parsley
Osso buco Milanese is traditionally served with saffron risotto but polenta, fettuccine, pappardelle pasta or any noodles can pair deliciously with it, a few slices of toasted bread rubbed with garlic for the marrow might be appreciated
Pair this delicious dish with an Italian red wine, Barbera is a wonderful red wine produced in Lombardy, the region where Milan is located
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