Venison Osso Buco

A classic dish of braised veal shanks that works wonderfully well with any antlered game. To prepare the shanks, cut a few inches below and six to eight inches above the knee joint. Once browned, this can also be prepared in a slow-cooker. Measuring ingredients not required or encouraged.

 

Venison Osso Buco

Ingredients

  • 4 venison shanks
  • 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 cups carrots diced
  • 1 cup celery diced
  • 1 cup onion diced
  • 4 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 cup dry red wine
  • 1 cup canned Italian tomatoes chopped
  • 1 cup game or beef broth

Instructions

  • Season shanks liberally with salt and pepper. Dust with flour.
  • Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large oven-safe pot (like a Dutch oven). Add shanks and brown evenly on all sides. More browning, but not burnt, equals more flavor. Add carrots, celery, onion, garlic and Italian seasoning and lightly brown. Add wine, cover with a tight-fitting lid or foil and place in the preheated oven for 2 hours. Check shanks for tenderness. If the meat does not pull away from the bone easily, recover and continue cooking for another hour or until shanks are tender.
  • Add tomatoes and beef broth, increase heat to 375 and return to the oven, uncovered, until liquid is reduced by one-half.
  • To serve, place one shank on each plate and spoon sauce over.