Lamb Osso Buco with Braised Green Cabbage, Broccolini, Juniper, and Creamy Goat Chèvre
Lamb shanks braised low and slow with juniper, caraway, rosemary, and bay until meltingly tender, with wedges of green cabbage that turn silky in the juices, and a creamy, tangy sauce enriched with soft goat chèvre. It's served with crisp lemon-garlic broccolini and a bright parsley gremolata. Don't forget to scoop out the marrow: it's the best bite.
Yield: Serves 4 · Active: 45 min · Total: 3½ hours, mostly hands-off (plus an optional overnight dry brine) · Best in North America from fall through winter, when cabbage and broccolini are at their sweetest · Best eaten: early evening
Ingredients
Lamb osso buco
4 lamb osso buco (cross-cut lamb shanks, 1½–2 inches thick, about 3 lb total), and/or 4 whole lamb shanks
2 tsp Baja Gold sea salt
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
2 tbsp tallow or grass-fed ghee
1 large yellow onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1 tbsp tomato paste
8 juniper berries, lightly crushed
1 tsp caraway seeds
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
A pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
2½ cups lamb or beef bone broth
1 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar (or ½ cup dry white wine)
Braised cabbage
1 small head green cabbage, cut into 6–8 wedges through the core
1 tbsp tallow or ghee
Pinch of Baja Gold sea salt
Creamy goat chèvre sauce
4 oz soft, creamy goat chèvre (like Sierra Nevada), at room temperature, plus extra for serving
Lemon-garlic broccolini
2 bunches broccolini, ends trimmed
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
½ tsp Baja Gold sea salt
Zest and juice of ½ lemon
Parsley gremolata
½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Zest of 1 lemon
1 small garlic clove, finely minced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of flaky sea salt
Method
Season the lamb. Pat the shanks dry and season them all over with the salt and pepper (ideally the night before, refrigerated uncovered). If you're using cross-cut shanks, tie a piece of kitchen twine around the outside of each one, so they hold their shape and keep the marrow in.
Sear. Heat the oven to 325°F. Take the lamb out of the fridge 30 minutes ahead. Heat the tallow in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and sear the lamb in batches until deeply browned, 3–4 minutes per side. Set it aside.
Build the braise. Lower the heat to medium, add the onion, and cook 6–8 minutes, until golden. Add the garlic and tomato paste for 1 minute, then the juniper, caraway, bay, rosemary, and nutmeg for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Pour in the broth and vinegar, scraping up the browned bits.
Braise. Return the lamb to the pot, nestled in a single layer, with the liquid coming about halfway up the meat. Cover and braise in the oven for 2 hours.
Sear the cabbage. While the lamb braises, heat the tallow in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and sear the cabbage wedges 2–3 minutes per side, until caramelized at the edges. Season with salt.
Add the cabbage. After 2 hours, tuck the cabbage wedges around the lamb, spooning some of the liquid over them. Return the pot to the oven, uncovered, for 40–45 minutes more, until the lamb is falling off the bone and the cabbage is silky and tender.
Make the gremolata. Stir together the parsley, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, and salt.
Roast the broccolini. Raise the oven to 450°F once the lamb is out (or roast it on another rack). Toss the broccolini with the olive oil, garlic, and salt, and roast in a single layer for 12–15 minutes, until the tips are crisp and charred. Finish with lemon zest and juice.
Make the chèvre sauce. Move the lamb and cabbage to a warm platter, and remove the twine, bay leaves, and rosemary stems. Skim the fat from the braising liquid. If it's thin, simmer it 5–10 minutes to reduce. Take the pot off the heat. Put the chèvre in a bowl, whisk in a ladle of the hot liquid until smooth, then stir it back into the pot. Don't let it boil again, or it can turn grainy.
Serve. Spoon the creamy sauce over the lamb and cabbage, and scatter generously with the gremolata. Add a few dollops of extra chèvre, and serve the broccolini alongside. Give everyone a small spoon for scooping out the marrow.
Serve It With
Silky celery root or cauliflower purée
Buttery mashed potatoes
Storage
Refrigerate the lamb and cabbage in their sauce up to 4 days. It's even better the next day. Reheat gently over low heat, without boiling, so the chèvre sauce stays silky. The braise freezes well before you add the chèvre, for up to 3 months. The broccolini is best fresh.
Nourishment Notes
Pasture-raised lamb shanks — complete protein, heme iron, zinc, B12, and CLA, plus gelatin and glycine from the long braise.
Bone marrow — rich in fat, with vitamins A and K2, and prized in traditional cultures as one of the most nourishing parts of the animal.
Goat chèvre — calcium, protein, and mostly A2-type casein, which many people find easier to digest than conventional cow's milk.
Green cabbage — vitamin C, vitamin K, and glucosinolates (the precursors to sulforaphane and DIM, which support estrogen metabolism).
Broccolini — vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, and glucosinolates.
Juniper, caraway, rosemary, and bay — warming aromatics traditionally used to support digestion, and classic partners for both lamb and cabbage in Central European cooking.
Parsley and lemon — vitamin K, vitamin C, and a bright finish that helps your body absorb the lamb's iron.
Bone broth — gelatin, glycine, and minerals.
For your cycle: The lamb's heme iron, zinc, and B12, plus the marrow's fat-soluble vitamins, make this especially restorative during the menstrual phase. The cabbage and broccolini support estrogen metabolism in the luteal phase.
Sourcing
Lamb osso buco or shanks — pasture-raised and grass-fed, from a local butcher (ask them to cross-cut the shanks), US Wellness Meats, or White Oak Pastures
Goat chèvre — soft and creamy, like Sierra Nevada, or a fresh chèvre from a local dairy near you
Bone broth — homemade from lamb or beef bones (see my Broths 101), or Bonafide Provisions (organic, sold frozen)
Cabbage, broccolini, onion, garlic, rosemary, parsley, and lemons — organic, from a farmers' market
Juniper berries, caraway seeds, bay leaves, nutmeg, and black pepper — organic and non-irradiated
Tomato paste — organic, in glass, with no added sugar (Bionaturae or Jovial)
Raw apple cider vinegar — organic, with the mother (Bragg)
Dry white wine (optional) — organic, with no added sulfites if possible
Tallow or ghee — tallow rendered from grass-fed suet, or grass-fed ghee
Extra virgin olive oil — organic, single-estate, harvest-dated, in dark glass
Salt — Baja Gold sea salt; Maldon for finishing
— Anna aka Food Marshall