Italian food is synonymous with comfort, and Julie Goodwin’s recipe for osso buco proves it. This beautiful slow-cooked meal is richly flavoured with tomato, stock and white wine, and filled with good-for-you vegetables. After the long cooking time, the osso buco will be tender and melt-in-your-mouth soft. It’s an Italian dish that’s both hearty and luxurious – the perfect autumn or winter dinner.
Ingredients
Method
Preheat oven to 160°C (140°C fan-forced).
Place flour in a large bowl; season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Coat osso buco in flour. Shake off the excess flour, otherwise it will burn in the pan. Reserve the remaining flour.
Heat half the oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Brown osso buco, in batches, until golden, then transfer to a large casserole dish.
Lower the heat to medium; add the remaining oil. Add the carrot, celery, onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until the onion is softened, but not brown. Add tomato paste; cook, stirring for a further minute. Add reserved flour; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the wine, stock, tomatoes and bay leaves. Place the vegetable mixture into casserole dish. Make sure all the meat is submerged in the liquid – any meat poking out the top will be tough and dry.
Cover dish and cook for 2-3 hours. Check from 2 hours onwards and when the meat is tender and falling away from the bone, it is ready. If the sauce needs to be thickened further, when the meat is cooked, remove the meat and keep under foil. Place the dish on the stove top over medium-high heat and boil until the sauce is as thick as you like it. Be careful to keep stirring so nothing burns.
GREMOLATA: Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.
Serve with mashed potato or soft polenta. Top with Gremolata.
What is osso buco?
Osso buco is an Italian Milanese recipe where cross-cut veal shanks are slow cooked to perfection in a vegetable, tomato and white wine sauce. It’s often served with risotto Milanese.
Additionally, osso buco is a term that butchers use for veal shin, usually cut into 3cm to 5cm thick slices. You can also get beef osso buco. You can use either for this recipe.
What to serve with the Italian osso buco
Italian osso buco is traditionally made with veal shanks and served with risotto Milanese, a yellow saffron risotto. However, mashed potato or a soft polenta are also good options for an accompaniment, as suggested in the recipe.
Can I freeze the osso buco?
Osso buco is suitable to freeze.
