Smoked & Braised Dry Aged Riverbend Cattle Co. Osso Buco

Osso Buco is a traditional northern Italian dish. Our take on this traditional dish involves bringing a little “country” into the preparation by smoking the dry aged cut at low temperature with wood chips.

Ingredients:

• 3 Riverbend Cattle Co. dry aged beef Osso Buco beef shank.  The shank will vary in size (plan on one bone for every 2-3 persons)
• Pinch of kosher or sea salt
• 1 tbsp of white pepper
• Tomato paste (one small can for every 3-4 shank bones)
• 1 white onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 cups of red wine
• 2 cups of beef stock
• 3 Bay leaves
• Fresh herbs of your choosing (thyme, rosemary, etc)
• Extra virgin olive oil or grape seed oil

Preparation:

Step 1

Season the beef shank with salt and pepper generously. 

Step 2

Place the shank bones in a smoker at 225° degrees. Do not place directly over the heat. The goal here is to impart flavor more so than cooking the meat.  After 30-45 minutes, flip the shank bones over and continue to smoke for another 30-45 minutes.  The smoke flavor can be quite powerful so you will have to use your judgment on the time you smoke the meat.  If there is a lot of smoke, you can cut this time down to 45-60 minutes.

Step 3

We recommend smoking the night before you braise to allow the smoked meats to chill in the refrigerator overnight. This is not a must however, so if you don’t have time for this, no problem. Just proceed with the preparation.

*Note - If you do not have a way to smoke the shank bones, just sear the seasoned shanks in the pot you intend on braising them in with a little olive oil.  You wont get the smoked “country twist” on this preparation but it will still be amazing!

Step 4

Preheat your oven to 350°

While the oven is preheating, place the shank bones in a Dutch oven. The key here is that the lid must seal well, so a cast iron or enamel metal pot with a heavy lid works best. 

Expert tip – brush on a little olive oil on the lid and pot edge to help seal the lid and keep moisture in

Add beef stock so that 2/3 of the meat is covered. Add red wine so that the liquid come up to just below the top of the meat. (don’t use the good stuff – serve that with the completed dish 😊) Because the bones vary in height, use an average for determining how much beef stock and wine to add. 

Add 3 bay leaves into braising liquid. Spoon out the tomato paste and cover the tops of the shank bone with the back of your spoon. Chop coarsely 2 cloves of garlic and sprinkle into the pot. Remove the outside layer of the white onion and cut it into large chunks about 1 to 1 ½ inch in size and add them into the pot around and over the top of the shanks. Place some fresh herbs over the top of the onions.

Step 5

Seal the lid (remember the oil trick) and place the pot into the oven at 350° for one hour.  Then reduce the temperature to 225° for an additional 6-7 hours.  Do not be tempted to open the oven or unseal the pot. Trust us, its good!

*Remove the pot from the oven and use small tongs or a serving fork to remove a portion of the meat to place over the starch of your choice. 

Remove the marrow bones and place them in a dish. With several demitasse spoons. The meat is super rich and goes a long way in richness in filling up your guests!

*For your next meal – you can save the rich broth from the braising pot by skimming off any fat and use it to make a gravy with it for a future meal. It freezes well for future use. The flavor cannot be beat!  When you are going to use it, heat it in a saucepan to a medium boil and thicken it with corn starch dissolved in warm water to help thicken it at the time you plan to serve it.