Thursday, December 8, 2011

LAMB SHANKS a la MEDZ MAMA

Marash Girl received a chain email from her friend who was sharing Marash Girl's recipe for lamb shanks, a recipe Marash Girl had shared with her years ago.  Here it is:

Wash lamb shanks under cold water and pat dry. Cover the lamb shanks with peeled, broadly sliced onions, peeled & chopped garlic (Marash Girl's addition -- Medz Mama would never use garlic and onions in the same dish), fresh green peppers, seeded & broadly sliced, fresh tomatoes sliced into quarters or canned whole tomatoes, kosher salt, pepper, Aintab red pepper.  (The chain email recommended cumin and bay leaf, though that was definitely not original to Marash or to MedzMama.)  Simmer in slow cooker, or bake in oven uncovered for an hour or two, or until lamb falls easily off of bone.  Serve hot over Armenian rice pilaf or bulghour pilaf.

Marash Girl's friend (and partner in crime during their trip to Egypt) writes, "I recommend serving this as lamb shanks or for a larger group I suggest taking the lamb off the bone before serving.  I sometimes do this same recipe but use cinnamon and allspice instead of cumin."

If you don't know how to make either rice pilaf or bulghour pilaf, serve the lamb shanks over plain rice, or check in later this week for the recipe for Marash Girl's very own bulghour pilaf.

N.B.  Here's the recipe as Marash Girl and her friend recorded it many years ago:
5 lamb shanks, 8 large quartered tomatoes or 2 large cans of whole tomatoes,
5 coarsely cut green peppers, 2 large onions sliced, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 bay leaf, 2 tbsps. cumin
Place lamb shanks in casserole, bake covered at 350 for 2 hours.  Serve over rice.  If you plan to serve this at a buffet dinner, you may want to remove bone before serving.

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