Italy -Slow Cooker Osso Buco
I am 100% Italian (American -I can't claim to be the original, but stll, my whole family is Italian). Its funny to be "displaced" in Colorado and think about what it actually means to be Italian American -how things are just a hair different. Anyway, all of my family lives in the same area in New Jersey, only a few have ever ventured out. One is my Aunt Lorraine, who is actually my mom's cousin. She moved out here in her 20s or 30s, married a guy with a motorcycle, and knows the hill country like a native. My sister moved out here last year, so we kind of have created a diaspora of our family out here.
So needless to say, on our way back from a ski day around the time of my birthday, my aunt, sister, and I went to a little Italian restaurant in Frisco that my aunt liked. My sister and I for some reason had skipped eating that day (WHAT were we thinking for a ski day -probably woke up too late) and so I was starving. My aunt, a tiny little lady, remembers how I said I could eat a whole animal if they put it on the table in front of me. And I came as close to that scenario as possible when I ordered osso buco -I had never had it before, but it was the biggest quantity of meat I could order. It was one of the best meals I've ever had in my life!
The Safeway on Uintah east of downtown has a discount meat section. Now, I know the combo "discount meat" would be enough to send some people away, but I have fallen on hard times so this is one of my favorite places to hang out. One particular week I got a couple cuts of lamb, some beef and pork ribs, and some veal for osso buco for 50% off. Now, I know the position against veal. I used to eat veal parmasan sandwhiches as a kid, but since then I haven't eaten any until about a year ago. But, considering lamb and all the other things we eat, it seems sort of pretentious to not eat veal. As if not eating veal still makes us conscious, considerate people. I carry the requisite guilt, and I surmise this post may ensure that no vegetarians read my blog (but I will have so many tasty vegetarian recipes!), but it was 50% off, and if I didn't buy it it might go bad, right?
So, now I was ready to try this recipe: http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/slow-cooker-osso-buco.aspx.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Four 1-1/2- to 2-inch-thick veal shanks (about 2-1/2 lb.)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 cup dry white wine
One 14-1/2-oz. can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup lower-salt chicken broth
1 small red onion, chopped (1-1/2 cups)
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds (1/2 cup)
1 stalk celery, chopped (1/2 cup)
5 sprigs fresh thyme
3 Tbs. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 Tbs. finely grated lemon zest
1 large clove garlic, minced (1 tsp.)
Directions:
Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the butter, and when it foams, add the shanks to the skillet. Cook until golden, turning once, about 10 minutes. Transfer the shanks to a slow cooker.
Add the wine to the skillet. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet and pour the contents of the skillet into the slow cooker. Add the tomatoes and their juices, chicken broth, onion, carrot, celery, and thyme. Cover and cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours—the meat will be very tender and almost falling off the bone.
Transfer the shanks to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Pour the sauce from the slow cooker into a large skillet. Simmer over medium heat until reduced to about 2 cups, 10 to 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the parsley, lemon zest, and garlic to make a gremolata*. Serve the veal shanks topped with the sauce and the gremolata.
* A gremolata is a chopped herb condiment classically made of lemon zest, garlic and parsley. It is a traditional accompaniment to the Milanese braised veal shank dish ossobuco alla milanese.
Gremolata usually includes grated lemon peel, although the zest from other citrus fruits (lime, orange, grapefruit, etc) may be used. There are also other variations, such as leaving out the herbs (parsley, cilantro/coriander, mint, sage) or the feature (garlic, finely grated fresh horseradish, minced shallot) or adding another item (Pecorino Romano cheese, anchovy, toasted pine nuts, grated bottarga).
***
I made this recipe with the suggested risotto alla Milanese (risotto with parmasan and saffron) (who knew! Saffron is also a spice for Italians?)
Ingredients:
1 medium onion, very finely chopped
8 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 lb. (2 cups) arborio, vialone nano, or carnaroli rice, or other medium- or short-grain Italian rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 cups hot homemade or low-salt canned chicken broth; more as needed
1/2 tsp. saffron threads
1 cup finely grated parmesan, preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
In a heavy-based saucepan that's large enough to hold the rice with plenty of room left over, cook the onion in 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat until it's translucent and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the rice and cook it over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add the wine, 2 cups of broth, and the saffron. Turn the heat to high until the broth comes to a simmer and then adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer.
Cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed, stirring every minute or two (there's no need to stir constantly). Add another cup of broth and keep cooking, stirring, and adding broth until the rice is al dente but not raw or grainy in the middle (see tip on Stirring risotto).
When the rice is ready, stir in the cheese. Add a little more broth to give the risotto the consistency you like (from fairly tight to almost soupy). Off the heat, stir in the remaining 6 tablespoons butter. Season with salt and pepper and ladle onto heated plates or bowls.
Again, in descending order: the final product.
Close up risotto -look at the saffron hairs, each approx. $0.60!
The gremolata -parsley, lemon zest, garlic. Would suggest NOT passing this up!
Risotto at the beginning of the process.
All the ingredients mixed up in the slow cooker pot.
Look at all these veg! See the Tools post to learn how I chopped all this up real easily.
This is a very important step to every recipe. I learned it the hard way. Browning meat on all sides before putting it in the crock pot or any other kind of recipe that includes immersing it in liquid is essential. It seals in the juices. Otherwise, you are essentially boiling the meat which makes it taste real weird and dry as you could imagine boiled meat would taste like. No one would ever intentionally boil their meat, so make sure to take care to not do this by accident!
Dredging meat is also something I am getting into. Dredging, also referred to as breading, means to dip food such as poultry, fish, or meat in flour, cornmeal, or bread crumbs to help preserve moisture during cooking. There are several reasons to dredge your food prior to sauteing or frying:
1) The coating keeps the food from sticking to the pan while cooking.
2) The flour and other dry ingredients seal in moisture to prevent the food from becoming tough.
3) The coating helps to brown the food and provide a crunchy surface.
4) The seasoning in the coating adds flavor to your food.
(Info courtesy of http://www.bhg.com/recipes/how-to/cooking-basics/how-to-dredge-food/)
Flour for dredging -just drag your meat through this.
The veal shanks, salt and peppered.