Serves 4
Ingredients
4 lamb shanks
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp pearl barley
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300ml lamb stock or water
1 fresh thyme sprig
1 sprig fresh parsley, plus 4 heaped tbsp parsley leaves, blanched and refreshed
1 tsp salt
150g carrots, roughly chopped
1 large leek, cut into 8 pieces
4 small potatoes, quartered
2 small onions, quartered
Freshly ground black pepper
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 3. Ask your butcher to trim off excess fat and saw the knuckles from the shanks. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Fry the lamb until nicely coloured on all sides. Transfer to a large braising dish, then add the barley, stock or water, fresh herbs and salt. Cover tightly with foil and a lid and cook in the oven for 1½ hours.
2 Remove the casserole from the oven, add the vegetables and a little more water if needed. Season the vegetables lightly, then cover the casserole and return it to the oven for another hour.
3 Remove from the oven and check that the lamb is moist and almost falling off the bone. If not quite ready, return it to the oven for another 15 minutes.
4 Transfer the lamb to a warmed serving platter, and cover while you finish the braised vegetables. Bring the dish back to a simmer on top of the stove, adding more water if needed to give a nice consistency. Add the blanched parsley leaves, and check and adjust the seasoning. To serve, ladle the vegetables onto warmed plates and place the shanks on top of each.