Lamb shanks with pearl barley risotto

This comforting dish really celebrates the flavour of the meat and is an incredible alternative to arborio rice.

Serves 4

Ingredients

Lamb shanks

• 4 lamb shanks
• 2 carrots
• 1 red onion
• 1 cup red wine
• 1 bouquet garni

Pearl barley risotto

• 1 cup pearl barley
• 2 cups chopped chestnut mushrooms
• 1 white onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 100g spinach
• 500ml chicken stock
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan

Method

1. Pre-heat fan forced oven to 150 degrees celsius. Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper before browning all over in a hot pan. Take a deep oven proof dish and add to it the red wine, chopped carrots, roughly chopped red onion, bouquet garni and the browned lamb shanks. Cover tightly with foil and place in the oven, basting the lamb every hour for four hours.
2. 45 minutes before you remove the lamb shanks from the oven, start preparing your risotto. Heat a good amount of olive oil in a pot and add the finely chopped onion. Stir until caramelised and add the finely chopped garlic. Stir in the chopped mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add the pearl barley and stir well before adding enough stock to cover the mixture. Stir this through and simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add more stock and continue this process until all of the stock has been used. Taste the barley and test to see if it is aldenté. If not, add more stock (if you have any) or water and cook until tender. When the barley is tender, stir through the spinach and parmesan. Season to taste.
3. To serve, place a generous spoon full of risotto on each plate or bowl and top with a gorgeously tender lamb shank. Spoon over the pan juices and vegetables from the lamb dish.