ZBD Style Osso Buco with Homemade Twisted Bread

This is a very rich and comforting dish that is best enjoyed with friends and family. It takes a decent amount of time to prepare and cook but is worth the trouble and wait. Anything done with love is worth doing… and eating! 🙂 I suggest drinking the remainder bottle of wine you didn’t use in the recipe while you are cooking for the best results 😉 Please note there are several methods out there for Oso Buco, this is my own version, ZBD style 😉 By no means am I claiming this to be traditional. My Blogger Friend Chica Andaluza inspired me to make this and I’m glad I did!

Prep Time: About an hour

Cook Time: 4 hours

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 2lbs Veal shank, about 4-5 shanks (Please find local or humanely raised veal or use beef).
• 1/2 C. Carrots, roughly chopped
• 1/2 C. Diced onions
• 1/2 C. Diced celery
• 1 Clove of garlic, minced
• 1 C. Flour
• 1 C. Red wine
• 1 C. Chicken Stock
• .5 C. Tomato puree
• 3 TBS Tomato paste
• 1/4 C. Olive oil
• 2 Bay leaves
• 4 Thyme strands, fresh
• 6 Green peppercorns, whole
• 6 Pink peppercorns, whole
• Cheese cloth
• Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Preheat large oven proof braising skillet on high on stove. Add oil until just about smoking.
2. Toss washed and dried veal shanks in flour, dust with salt and pepper, and fry in 1/4 C. olive oil for 3 min on each side. Set shanks aside on a separate plate.
3. Add veggies: Celery , onion, carrot, and garlic to pan and cook until onions are translucent and mixture is fragrant.
4. While the veggies are cooking make your herb sachet: Cheesecloth, bay leaves, peppercorns, and thyme. Tie up in a nice little bundle and throw it in the skillet.
5. Add wine and reduce to medium high, scraping the bits off the bottom of the pan for about 3 min.
6. Add the stock and tomato puree and paste and mix well. Keep simmering for about 5 min. You will want to salt and pepper to taste on this dish since your stick may be more salty than mine. But go ahead and start with a 3/4 TBS of salt and pepper and stir. This is the point where I add another dash of wine from the bottle (for good measure). 🙂 I probably use about a cup and a half all together…
7. Cover brasier or dutch oven with it’s lid and pop in the oven for 3.5 hours.
8. Taste the sauce and add more salt if needed when done. It shouldn’t need it… but just in case. Remove sachet and serve it up with lots of the gravy/juice veggie mixture. 

Bread:

Prep Time: 1 hr and 10 min

Cook Time: 20-30 min

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 2.5-3.5 C. of Bread Flour
• 1 PKG Rapid Rise Yeast
• 1/4 C. Greek yogurt
• 1 TBS Canola oil
• 3/4 C. 160 degree water.
• 1 Salt
• 1 tsp. Canola oil for greasing bowl
• Corn meal for dusting pan.
• 1 Pad of butter

Instructions:

1. In your mixer add 2.5 C of bread flour (save the rest for reserve). Add yeast to flour and mix while dry.
2. Heat up yogurt, water, and 1 TBS of oil to 160. Mix well. Transfer to a pourable measuring cup or regular cup.
3. Turn mixer onto speed 2 and slowly mix in liquid mixture. Mix for approx. 5 min. From here add flour if needed until doudh is cleaned off sides of mixer bowl. (Use that reserve flour for this).
4. Let dough rise for about an hour in a greased bowl, cover bowl.
5. Roll out dough into a large rectangle, and roll up long ways. Cut long roll in half and twist up the bread tapering at the ends.
6. Rub butter on top of bread loaf and place the bread on a baking sheet dusted in cornmeal.
7. Bake for 20-30 min or until done. 

Enjoy and Cheers! I highly suggest dipping that bread in the osso buco juice and slurping up that bone marrow or also putting it on the bread! Just a suggestion 😉