- 4
Ingredients
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- Kosher salt
- 2 tsp sweet paprika
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander seed
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 lamb shanks, trimmed of outer fat
- 3 T. olive oil
- 2 yellow onions, diced
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 C. water, or more as needed
- 3/4 C. green olives, pitted and sliced
- 4 preserved lemon wedges, slivered
- 4 preserved lemon wedges (for garnish
Preparation
Step 1
Put the garlic in a suribachi or mortar, add a teaspoon of salt and use a wooden pestle to grind the garlic to a paste. Stir in the paprika,
cumin, coriander and ginger, and several turns of black pepper. Rub some of the mixture over each lamb shank, set on a baking sheet, cover and refrigerate for several hours
or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 300'F. Pour the olive oil into a large, deep pan set over medium heat. Add the shanks and brown them evenly all around. Use tongs to transfer the shanks to a plate or baking sheet. Add the onions to the pan, season with several pinches of salt and cook until they are limp and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Do not let the onions brown. Add the minced garlic and saute 2 minutes more.
Set the browned shanks on top of the
onions and garlic, add 2 cups water, cover the pan and set on the middle rack of the oven.
Bake the shanks until the lamb falls off the bone, about 2 1/2 hours. Check occasionally and add more water if needed. Uncover the pot for the final 20 minutes of cooking. Remove from the oven and let rest, covered, for up to
30 minutes.
To serve, transfer the lamb shanks to a platter. Set the pan over a burner. If there is a lot of liquid left, cook over medium-high heat until it is reduced to about 1/2 cup. Stir in the sliced olives and slivered lemon wedges and pour the sauce over the shanks. Garnish with the remaining wedges of preserved lemons and serve immediately.