Ina’s Osso Buco

I’m counting down to Ina’s memoir release by sharing one favorite recipe daily from each of her 13 cookbooks!

Next up is Foolproof and Ina’s otherworldly, Osso Buco!

I tackled this recipe only six months into my project, naively unaware of how much veal shanks would cost. I might have been cursing Ina under my breath as I walked out of the butcher’s with just two tiny veal shanks—all I could afford instead of the eight large shanks the recipe called for. But one taste, and I was sold.

I posted, “STOP what you’re doing and cash in your 401K—because that’s how much it will cost to make this recipe. But it’s worth EVERY. CENT.”

As it’s such an expensive dish,  I hadn’t remade it since, though I often dreamed about its deliciousness.

Eight years on, I figured it was due for a revisit. The full eight shanks were still out of my price range, so I made it with four large veal shanks and invited friends over for a stick-to-your-bones lunch.

They are rather easy to prepare – the shanks are dredged in flour and seared then nestled in a Dutch oven with sautéed celery, carrots, leek, onion, and  garlic along with lemon zest, thyme, white wine and chicken stock. A nice visit in the oven and you are rewarded with tender fall-off-the-bone meat – quite possibly the best thing I’ve ever made … despite selling a kidney to afford it.

Absolutely worth it!

Book: Foolproof. page 144
Rating: 5/5 
How Easy Is That: Easy
Store-Bought Is Fine: dry white wine
Pricey Ingredients: Veal shanks
Hard-to-find: Veal shanks

Recipe not online.