Kleftiko

serves 4
ingredients
4 lamb shanks
5 tablespoons olive oil
450g/1lb onions, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, crushed and
chopped
300ml/10fl oz dry white wine
450g/1lb canned chopped
plum tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Rub the lamb shanks with salt and pepper, then brown them all over in a
frying pan in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Put into a casserole dish with
a tight-fitting lid.
• Add some more of the olive oil to the frying pan and, over a low heat,
sweat the onions until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for
2 minutes. Transfer to the casserole dish, distributing around the shanks.
• Over a high heat, deglaze the pan with the wine, stirring and scraping
up any bits using a wooden spoon, then pour the liquid over the lamb.
Add the tomatoes with their liquid, the bay leaf and oregano.
• Bring to the boil, put on the lid and reduce the heat to a simmer. After
11⁄2 hours, test to see whether the meat is done. If not, continue cooking
until it is tender.
• Remove the shanks and keep warm on serving plates. Discard the bay
leaf, and transfer the tomato and onion mixture to a blender or food
processor. Whiz briefly and pass through a sieve. Spoon the sauce
around the shanks and serve immediately.