Slow Cooker Sunday: Lamb Shanks

This is a family friend's recipe which was a dinner party staple at home for as long as I can remember. Now that I'm all grown up (ugh) it's still one of my favourite dishes.

The key to lamb shanks is to cook the shit out of them, you want the meat to be falling off the bone so leave yourself plenty of time.

Lamb Shanks with Dumplings (serves 4)

4 lamb shanks

1 onion, diced

Parsnips, potatoes, or kumara (chop them up and put in as many as you can fit in the pan)

2 capsicums, preferably green

1 Tbs minced chilli

1 Tbs minced garlic

2 Tbs curry powder

2 cans coconut cream

2 cups chicken stock

a few sprigs of rosemary

I know coconut and lamb might sound kind of weird, but bear with me because it tastes amazing.

First things first get the oven going at 160°C.

Sear the lamb shanks on both sides in a super hot pan, then chuck them into a big roasting dish with all of the above ingredients and some salt and pepper.

Now for the dumplings:

8 slices of grainy bread
2 eggs
1 Tbs chopped fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper

Put the dumpling ingredients into a food processor and mix until combined. Squeeze them into balls and add them to the pan.

Cover the pan with tinfoil and cook for an hour and a half, then remove the tinfoil and cook for at least another hour. Ages I know, but it's worth the wait.

By the time it's done the meat should be falling off the bone and the sauce should have reduced and thickened.

This is the perfect dish going into winter, and it's pretty easy too. Get cooking yo!