Lamb shank from the Dutch oven

➊ First, wash the lamb shanks, pat them dry and remove the upper part of the bone. To do this, you can cut away the top layer of tendon and fry it with the sauce. Use the back of a knife to scrape the bones free and press the meat down slightly. Remove any large layers of fat or tendon!

➋ Season the meat all over with salt and pepper and sear in the Dutch oven until it has a nice roasted aroma. Take the meat out and sear the root vegetables, letting them roast nicely here too. Then add the tomato paste and stir well, deglaze with 1/3 of the red wine and reduce. Keep adding red wine and reduce until there is about ¾ of a bottle in the pot. Add the shanks, rosemary and thyme, bay leaves, allspice, ginger and vanilla and top up with 1 ½ l of stock so that everything is about 80% covered. Close the lid. 1/3 of the heat should now be added from below and 2/3 from above. The shanks need about 1 ½ hours to become cooked and tender.

➌ In another Dutch oven, sauté the diced onions in sunflower oil over medium heat until translucent, add the potatoes and grated garlic. Stir everything gently and deglaze with a ladle of vegetable stock. While stirring constantly (as when preparing a risotto), the starch slowly comes out of the potato and binds the mixture. When the liquid is used up, add a little more. After about 15-20 minutes, the potato should still have a slight bite and the risotto should be slightly thickened. Now season with salt and pepper, a small pinch of sugar and a little nutmeg. Turn off the heat, add a piece of cold butter, the grated Parmesan and the chopped fresh herbs.

➍ Check occasionally whether the knuckles have enough liquid in the pot. If the meat can be easily removed from the bone, they are ready. The sauce has been reduced and can also be seasoned again. Serve the risotto on plates with one knuckle each and drizzle with the sauce. Fresh herbs or spring onions add a nice touch.