Osso buco
Osso buco means "bone with a hole", and that bone is key: the marrow and the collagen from the bone go into the sauce, giving it a sticky body and deep flavour. The meat braises for two hours in liquid reaching halfway up each slice — fully submerged it boils rather than braises.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Searing the shanks 20 min
- Soffritto 15 min
- Braising 120 min
- Gremolata 8 min
Step by step
0 / 7 doneTie the slices with twine
Wrap each shank slice around its circumference with kitchen twine and knot it. A membrane runs around the bone that contracts while braising and pushes the meat outwards — untied, the slice easily falls apart.
Ingredients: 1200 g veal shank · 50 g plain flour · 2 tsp salt · 1 tsp pepper · 3 tbsp olive oil · 30 g butter
TipNick the membrane in three places before tying so the slice does not curl into a cup.
Twine holds the slice together through two hours of braising.Dust and sear
Heat the oven to 160°C. Pat the meat dry, season with salt and pepper and dust with flour, shaking off the excess. Heat the oil with the butter in a heavy ovenproof pot and sear the slices in batches for 4–5 minutes per side until deeply browned (about 20 minutes in total). Lift onto a plate.
Ingredients: 1200 g veal shank · 50 g plain flour · 2 tsp salt · 1 tsp pepper · 3 tbsp olive oil · 30 g butter
TipSear two slices at a time. Crowded meat releases water and stews instead of browning.
The dark crust is the backbone of the sauce's flavour.Make the soffritto
In the same fat cook the finely diced onion, carrot and celery for 12 minutes over medium heat until soft and beginning to gild. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook 2 minutes until the paste darkens.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 2 pcs carrots · 2 pcs celery · 3 cloves garlic · 2 tbsp tomato paste · 250 ml white wine · 500 ml stock · 2 pcs bay leaves · 1 tsp thyme
TipCooked tomato paste loses its raw acidity and gains depth. Two minutes you can taste in the finished sauce.
Deglaze with wine
Pour in the wine and scrape up the browned bits with a wooden spoon — that is where the searing flavour sits. Boil hard for 4 minutes until reduced by half and no longer smelling of alcohol.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 2 pcs carrots · 2 pcs celery · 3 cloves garlic · 2 tbsp tomato paste · 250 ml white wine · 500 ml stock · 2 pcs bay leaves · 1 tsp thyme
Braise for two hours
Return the slices in a single layer, add the stock, bay and thyme. The liquid should come halfway up the meat, no higher. Cover, put in the hot oven and braise at 160°C for 2 hours, turning once after an hour.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 2 pcs carrots · 2 pcs celery · 3 cloves garlic · 2 tbsp tomato paste · 250 ml white wine · 500 ml stock · 2 pcs bay leaves · 1 tsp thyme
TipThe meat is ready when it pulls from the bone under spoon pressure. If it resists, give it another 20 minutes.
Liquid halfway up the slice, no higher.Chop the gremolata
Chop the lemon zest, parsley, garlic and anchovies together until you have a fine, moist mixture. Chopped together, the ingredients blend into a single aroma.
Ingredients: 1 pcs lemon · ½ bunch parsley · 1 clove garlic · 2 pcs anchovies
Chopped together — lemon, parsley and garlic in one aroma.Remove the twine and serve
Cut and remove the twine. If the sauce is thin, lift out the meat and reduce it 5 minutes uncovered. Scatter the gremolata just before serving — after a few minutes on the hot sauce it loses its freshness. Give everyone a small spoon for the marrow.
Ingredients: 1 pcs lemon · ½ bunch parsley · 1 clove garlic · 2 pcs anchovies
Before you start
Better the next day
After a night in the fridge the sauce is deeper and the meat holds together better. Make the gremolata fresh before serving.
What to serve with it
Classically with saffron risotto alla milanese. Polenta or mashed potato also work — you need something to mop up the sauce.
Instead of veal
Beef shank needs 3 hours instead of 2 and gives a stronger, darker sauce. Bone-in slices of turkey drumstick need only about 75 minutes.
