By Chef Jeremy McLachlan

This month we are featuring lamb at all Salty's restaurants. Lamb is like our last presidential race, you either love it or you hate it. Throughout my culinary adventures I always wanted my mom to try lamb and she never would. Whenever she thought of lamb she remembered overcooked gamey flavored mutton. So one day I gave her a "beef shank" and she loved it. Afterwards I told her she had just eaten lamb and we haven't spoken since. Ha! I did not know she would disown her son over eating lamb. Now I'm known as a Baaad Boy! It is funny to me how a poorly cooked dish in your childhood changes your eating habits as an adult. I have heard these same comments about brussels sprout, scallops and turnips.

This month I am giving you my very special lamb shank recipe. This recipe is easy to do and not too expensive. As Kathy Kingen says in her blog Tasty Traditions, "It is a very tender variety of meat that has an extremely luscious, almost buttery taste and texture."

Baaad Boy Lamb Shanks

Serves 4

4 lamb shanks
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup flour
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 bottle red wine (something good, don’t be cheap)
1 white onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
3 ribs celery, chopped
4 white mushrooms, chopped, optional
4 garlic cloves, peeled
6 grinds black pepper
4 sprig thyme
2 sprig rosemary
2 quarts chicken broth low sodium
6-8 tablespoons Wondra flour
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Season lamb shanks really well with salt and pepper and then dredge in flour. Heat large ovenproof soup pot to medium-high heat. Add olive oil and sear shanks on both sides until golden brown. Remove from pan and set aside.

Add red wine to hot pot and boil for 5 minutes to cook off first harshness of alcohol. Add all vegetables, spices and chicken broth. Put shanks back in pan and be sure they are covered in liquid. Cover pot with foil. Cook in oven for 3 hours.

Remove pot from oven and check tenderness of shanks. Lamb meat should come off bone with a gentle nudge of fork. Very carefully remove shanks from liquid and set aside. Strain liquid and discard vegetables. Return liquid to pot. Bring to boil and sprinkle with Wondra flour while whisking aggressively to create a thick sauce. Season with salt to taste. Place lamb shank on plate or bowl and pour thick sauce over lamb shanks and enjoy.

Drink other half of that bottle of wine.

(Author of Kitchen Talk, Jeremy McLachlan is also Corporate Chef for Salty's Seafood Grill restaurant group. He says: My love is to create great dishes with fresh seafood, as we are a seafood restaurant, but not forget the meat lovers. My goal is to match exceptional food with our incredible views. Living in the Pacific Northwest, we are fortunate to have an abundance of regional treasures. The use of these fresh ingredients is key to Salty's Northwest cuisine. If you have any questions about cooking, feel free to email me at chef@saltys.com.)