Lamb shank lasagne
I think I’ve made my favourite lasagne yet. It’s by no means traditional and merges (and blasphemes cultures and traditions) but it’s a winner – especially as we are now officially in Autumn and it’s simply time for the heartier meals that Summer doesn’t really entice.
This version is simpler in ways, a little richer in one element but a whole lot lighter in another. It takes a while but mostly because of the slow cooked ragu, which doesn’t really demand much anyway.
Basically, it’s just really a very good dinner - and paired with a simple green salad (I did lollo rossa and shaved raw courgette) and a quick homemade French vinaigrette (olive oil, dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper), your guests will be happy to have visited and you’ll be even happier if there are left overs.
Ingredients
For the ragu:
1tbsp olive oil
2 lamb shanks
Sofrito (finely diced: carrots, celery, white onion)
1tbsp tomato puree
200ml red wine
1 jar passata
500ml lamb stock
1tsp dried oregano
Salt and pepper
For the bechamel:
2tbsp butter
1-2tbsp plain flour
1 pint whole milk
A little freshly grated nutmeg
1tbsp grated parmesan
Salt and pepper
Other ingredients:
1 large aubergine, sliced lengthways about 1cm
1 block of feta cheese
Lasagne sheets
Dried oregano
Freshly grated parmesan
Method
For the ragu
Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper.
Heat the oven to 160 (fan).
In a deep, heavy-based lidded casserole pot, heat the olive oil and brown all sides of the lamb shanks. Set aside.
The lamb would have released oil so no need to add any more, but don’t pour any away.
In the same pot, slowly sauté the sofrito, taking time on a low to medium heat. Anywhere between 10-15 minutes is right for it all to soften and melt down to become sweet and flavoursome.
Add the tomato puree and coat the mixture well, cooking for a couple of minutes.
Add the wine and cook off for another 2 minutes.
Add in the passata and lamb stock and a little more salt and pepper, giving everything a good stir.
Put the lamb shanks back into the pot, making sure they’re fully immersed and enveloped, and bring the whole thing up to a good simmer. Once simmering (not boiling), put the lid on and put pot into the oven for 2 hours. Check on it about halfway, stirring and turning the lamb a little.
——
For the bechamel
(Disclaimer - I very much make bechamel using sight and how it feels and changes against a wooden spoon. In the words of Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor, it’s vibration cooking. These measurements work well for me but sometimes I add more flour and whisk hard at the end because it just didn’t set how I wanted, or I add more milk because it’s too gloopy for my liking. Have a go and have a play.)
In a saucepan, melt the butter until its foamy and add the flour. Mix hard to make a roux.
The thicker and more viscous the roux, the more milk you might need for a more pourable sauce OR the thicker the bechamel will be with the stated amount of milk; each to their own.
Slowly pour the milk in adding only a little at a time, continuously stirring. The first pour of milk should be around 100ml to allow the roux and the milk to combine for a smooth start. Gradually add more milk, letting it thicken each time before the next lot.
Keep the saucepan on a low to medium heat and stir all the time. When you’re happy with the consistency, take it off the heat, add in the parmesan, salt, pepper and nutmeg and stir. This can sit to the side until assembly time.
——
For the rest:
When the ragu is done, you should be able to effortlessly pull the meat away from the bone and shred with two forks to mix thoroughly through the rest of the pot. If there’s resistance, put it back in the oven for another 20 minutes and try again.
Heat the oven to 200 (fan). Lay the aubergine slices on a lined baking tray, brush with oil, and sprinkle with salt.
Put the aubergines in the oven for 15 minutes, turning them over about half way through for even colouring and softening.
Now, time to layer up! In a oven dish, start with a layer of lasagne sheets (it helps cutting, serving and less meat sloppiness and wastage).
On goes a layer of ragu, followed by a layer of aubergines, then lasagne sheets, then bechamel, parmesan and crumbled feta. Repeat until you get to the top.
For the very final layer, I smoothed out the bechamel to cover the lasagne sheets for more even cooking, before a generous feta and parmesan finish and oregano dusting.
When ready to cook, heat the oven to 180 (fan) and leave the dish in there for 30 minutes. Give it some time to cool a little before cutting and serving up – it saves mouths and preserves the layers.
Tip: The way I made this was quite rough and ready meaning that apart from a fairly even layer of ragu each time, the other elements didn’t cover the entire dish or hide the previous layer: there were gaps, which I quite liked for changes in mouthfuls. See photos below.
