Smoked Lamb Shanks with Middle Eastern Flavours

 

We were both fortunate to have had a change of scenery during this endless winter:  Kris visited her son Andy in Montreal where they visited lots of art galleries and enjoyed some great new restaurants, and Andrea hit the slopes with Reid, Samantha and Eric.   Coming home again we were ready for some comfort food.  As an experiment we smoked lamb shanks and a chunky vegetable sauce separately and then combined them for a fall-off-the-bone hearty dish.  The warm spices do double duty as a rub and in the sauce. 

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

4 meaty lamb shanks

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 carrots, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon Harissa

1 cup dry red wine

One 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, coarsely chopped

2 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth 

2 tablespoons finely chopped mint

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Combine the cumin, coriander, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg in a small bowl.  Season the lamb shanks with salt, pepper, and ½ of the spice mixture. 

In a large skillet, heat the oil. Add the onion, carrots and garlic and cook over MEDIUM heat, stirring, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining spice mixture and cook, stirring until lightly toasted, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and harissa and cook over MEDIUM HIGH heat, stirring, until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in the wine, the tomatoes and the chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. 

Meanwhile, light the smoker and set to 2 and 2 for a consistent temperature of about 275°F.  Place the prepared vegetable mixture in the diffuser pan on the smoker, then position the grids above and arrange the lamb shanks on the grids.  Let smoke for 3 hours. 

Remove the lamb and sauce from the smoker.  Skim the fat from the surface of the sauce, nestle the meat in the sauce and cover tightly with foil.  Replace the pan on the smoker and continue to cook for 1 hour. 

Garnish with chopped fresh mint and cilantro.  We served this with toasted naan bread and steamed asparagus.