Grilled Lamb Shank W/ Red Wine Reduction

I have made lamb a lot, but this is the first time I am writing about it. I think I may even be getting better at the plating thing. (See photo from my iphone)

Even if you do not like lamb, you will love this dish. Chances are somewhere in your past you had lamb that was not prepared properly. Lamb can be gamy (spelling?), but if you try out this recipe I promise it will make a lamb-lover out of you.

I went to Costco and scored some lamb shank. Please do not ask me what part of the lamb that is because I have not a clue. I usually only buy chicken at Costco because there is no toughness associated with it after freezing and then thawing. Red meat tends to get tough after it has been frozen and then thawed. Usually I buy ALL my meat at this specialty store called Lunardi's. They have a mile long meat and fish case...ok it's not a mile long but it has a great quality selection of butchered meats and fresh seafood. They will also prepare any cut of meat or fish that you purchase, to ease the preparation process.

You will need:

• 2-4 Lamb shanks
• bunch of green beans
• "red wine"
• Garlic
• Olive Oil
• Fresh Rosemary
• Unsalted butter
• salt, pepper
• Dijon mustard
  
• Jalapeno cheddar mashed potatoes (this is my secret recipe...not sharing it as I fear someone will steal it and make a million and if anyone is going to capitalize on this recipe it will be me :) )
  

My boy friend loves lamb as an alternative to beef. You, can have less of it and still be satisfied because the meat is so rich and savory. I marinated the lamb in some left over Lambrusco I had in the fridge. What in the H*** is a Lambrusco you ask? GREAT question but this is not a WINE blog...its a food blog...only kidding. Lambrusco is a sparkling red wine; Delicious and creamy and slightly sweeter than your usual "still" red wines. That is about as far as I go with wine...I only know what my tongue likes :) You can marinate this in red wine if that is all you have. Trader Joe's has a great "2-buck-chuck" that comes in all varieties of grapes...very worth it for cooking. Most of the food network chefs will tell you to cook with a wine that you would drink and I think that is a load of crap...I am not saying to short change yourself but you can get great wine at any budget.

Marinate the lamb in Lambrusco, olive oil, crushed garlic, fresh rosemary, salt and pepper.

Clean and snip the ends off the green beans. Just put the green beans in foil with olive oil, salt and pepper. Everything is going on the BBQ...hence grilled lamb shank. The green beans can go on the top rack in the grill. The lamb only needs about 3 minutes on each side on a high flame. You will need to stand there and watch it.

The red wine reduction is really easy. Just put red wine in a pan and bring to a simmer so the alcohol can cook out and start to reduce. Add the unsalted butter, salt and pepper, few sprigs of rosemarry and a teaspoon of dijon mustard. Dijon is a very common pairing with lamb. The sauce will reduce by half. Be sure not to over cook your sauce or it will seperate from breaking down too much. I made that mistake but quickly learned from it. If you look real close at the photos I took, you can tell my sauce broke...but it still tasted great.

Plate as you wish...use a starch that you like. I plated mine over MY mashed potatoes but you could use anything. I am a traditionalist when it comes to serving meat with just some good old fashioned potatoes.

Enjoy!