Beer Braised Beef Shanks

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Ingredients

• 1kg bone in beef shanks (4 pieces)
• 2 Carrots (medium dice)
• ½ Celery (medium dice)
• ½ Leek (medium dice)
• 1 Onion (medium dice)
• ¼ Cup tomato puree
• ½ teaspoon salt (or as required, also depends on stock used)
• ¼ teaspoon crushed black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• Parsley leaves (sliced thinly, garnish)
• 300ml dark strong beer (I used Leffe, a Belgian beer, Guinness would work too)
• 300ml beef stock
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme.
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• Options for thickening the sauce: (1. Cornstarch slurry: 2 teaspoons of cornstarch and a little water to make a paste, OR 2. A roux: equal parts butter and flour, OR 3. Puree the vegetables to thicken the sauce)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160˚C
2. Season beef shanks with salt and pepper and sear in a lightly greased hot cast iron skillet. Brown on all sides and set aside.
3. Heat vegetable oil in a dutch oven or any oven safe cookware, sauté the onions for 4 minutes, add carrots, garlic, celery, leek and bay leaves and cook for another 4 minutes.
4. Add tomato puree, thyme and rosemary and cook for a minute. Add beef stock and brown beer and bring to a boil.
5. Season with salt and pepper and return the beef shanks to the pan. Cover dutch oven and set in the oven.
6. Cook beef shanks slowly for about 3 hours or until meat is tender and falling off the bone. If you do not have time, you can increase the heat to 180˚C and cook for 2 hours. Meat can also be cooked slower on a lower temperature for longer time.
7. If you would like to thicken your sauce before serving, you should set pan on the stove on low heat and add the corn starch slurry, roux or pureed vegetables to the pan. Heat through till desired consistency.
8. Garnish with parsley and served with mashed potatoes and steam vegetables.