The best Asian-style lamb shanks (oven & Instant Pot)

These slow-cooked Asian-style lamb shanks are my new favourite lamb shank recipe. The orange & honey add a hint of sweetness, and the beef stock and soy deliver a deep umami flavour. The aromatics of garlic, chilli, ginger and five spice carry this dish to flavour town.

Red wine braised lamb shanks have always been my favourite. I couldn’t imagine them getting any better. I will be hard-pressed to decide which recipe to choose next time I make this dish.

Simmering lamb shanks until they fall off the bone is the best way to cook them. I love that this recipe is so hands-off. Perfect for a slow day when the pot can bubble away in the oven, and you can get on doing something else.

I have made this in the oven, but this recipe can be adapted to suit an Instant Pot as per my red wine lamb shanks recipe.

I love to serve these Asian-style lamb shanks with mashed potatoes. Cooked greens such as bok choi, tender stem broccoli or beans are a must too. Add wasabi to the mash to give it a spicy edge if you like.

I developed this recipe for Haute Cabrière. It pairs so well with their Arnim Family Reserve Pinot Noir 2019.

What to serve with these slow-cooked Asian-style lamb shanks?

• Bok choy and mushrooms with a miso dressing
• Mashed potato or wasabi mash.
• Steamed broccoli or broccolini, asparagus, sugar snap peas or mange tout.
• Caramelised wedges of orange or clementines.
• Fresh coriander (cilantro).

You might also like:

The best slow-roasted shoulder of lamb with harissa and garlic

Lamb shank pie

A classic Greek lamb Moussaka

Herb-crusted roast rack of lamb

Lamb pie with mint & peas

Grilled lamb chops with rosemary & garlic

Instant Pot beef brisket ragu with pasta

Easy ramen with buttered corn, roast chicken and bacon

These Asian-style lamb shanks can be cooked in an Instant Pot too.

How to cook Asian-style lamb shanks in an Instant Pot

1. Remove the lamb shanks from the fridge and season the lamb shanks well with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a splash of olive oil in the Instant Pot set to saute and brown the meat on both sides. Do this in two batches. Remove and set aside.
3. Keeping the Instant Pot set to sauté function, add the onions and cook until softened – about 6 – 8 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent them from going brown.
4. Add two tablespoons of flour and stir through the softened onions to form a paste.
5. In a jug add the beef stock (you could also use lamb stock), soy, ginger, garlic, five spice and stir to combine You will need a a little extra stock when cooking in an Instant Pot so add about 1/2 – 1 cup extra.
6. Set the Instant Pot to Manual pressure cook HIGH (take off the keep warm function) and set it for 50 minutes.
7. Once the cooking time is up, let the Instant Pot naturally release pressure for 15 minutes. Then, carefully release any remaining pressure manually.
8. Remove the shanks with a slotted spoon and allow the liquid to settle. Either use a fat separator or place a sheet of kitchen paper over the top of the liquid to absorb this fat layer. Quickly remove and discard. Depending on how fatty the meat was, you will probably need to repeat this 3 more times (a total of 4 x sheets of paper).
9. When you think you have removed most of the fat, cook the juices down for 10 – 12 minutes until it has reduced and thickened slightly. Return the lamb shanks to the Instant Pot to heat through and spoon the sauce over when you serve.

Instant Pot lamb shanks can be made in advance and refrigerated overnight. To serve, simply place the inner bowl in the Instant Pot and reheat as needed.

Here is a video of how I made this dish:

Slow-cooked Asian-style lamb shanks

A delicious slow-cooked Asian-style lamb shank recipe. 

Print Recipe

Prep Time:20 minutes mins

Cook Time:2 hours hrs

Ingredients

• 4 large lamb shanks or 6 small ones
• Olive oil
• 1 onion dice
• 2 star anise pods
• ½ tsp five spice
• 1 Tbs flour Use 2 tablespoons when making this in an Instant Pot
• 500 ml beef stock (1/2 cup if you are making the shanks in an Instant Pot)
• 1 Tbsp finely grated fresh ginger
• 1 Tbs minced garlic about 3 – 4 cloves
• 4 Tbsp honey or brown sugar
• 4 Tbsp soy sauce
• Juice from 1 orange about 80ml (or clementine)
• Pinch of chilli or more if you like heat

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 170C / 338F.
• Heat a glug of olive oil in a lidded oven-proof casserole or non-stick frying pan. Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper and brown on all sides until golden. Remove and set aside.
• Wipe the pan to remove any burned bits and excess oil.
• Heat another glug of olive oil (about 2 Tbsp) in the pan and sauté the onions until translucent – about 4 minutes. Add the five spice and cook until fragrant.
• Mix the stock, ginger, garlic, honey, and soy in a jug. Juice the orange.
• Add the flour to the onions and five spice and cook until thickened. Add ¼ of the stock mix to deglaze and stir until thickened. Slowly add the rest of the stock and then the orange juice.
• Add the lamb shanks back into the pan with the meaty side submerged in the liquid and put a Iid on the pot (or transfer to a casserole dish and seal with foil). Bake in the oven for 1.5 – 2 hours depending on the size of the shanks. Small shanks will be fall-off the bone ready at around 1.5 hours. Check and just keep cooking until this stage.
• Serve with mashed potatoes and cooked greens such as bok choi, tender stem broccoli or green beans.
• *add 2 tsp of wasabi to your mashed potatoes to make wasabi mash

Notes

This dish can be made in advance and reheated.

You can make this in the oven or in an Instant Pot.

Servings: 4

Author: Sam Linsell

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