Ossobuco in red wine sauce is a highly appreciated recipe in many countries, both in Europe and America. A long simmer allows to obtain very tender meat that falls off the bone on its own, and a thick sauce that is irresistible when dipping mashed potatoes, polenta or rice.
Ingredients:
2 ossobuco slices of approx. 400 gr. each one
2 glasses of red wine
1 onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
2-3 cloves of garlic
A little flour
Laurel, salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil
For the mashed potatoes:
1/2 kilo of potatoes
A little milk
A little cold butter (optional)
Salt and pepper
This recipe for ossobuco in red wine sauce is somewhat long but very simple. I strongly recommend observing the steps described, since as it will turn out, there are several details that we must respect to obtain an excellent result:
As a first measure, we must make some cuts in the connective tissues of each ossobuco, or bridle the outline. This first step is necessary so that the meat maintains its shape and does not curl during cooking. Then, season and flour both sides of each ossobuco, trying to get rid of excess flour.
Heat a little extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan or low pot and brown each slice on both sides. Remove and reserve.
Chop the vegetables finely, add a little more oil to the pan if necessary, and sauté over moderate heat. Return the meat to the pan, without forgetting to recover all the juices it may have released. Add the wine and cook over high heat for a few minutes until the alcohol evaporates. Make sure the meat is completely covered with the liquid, otherwise add a little meat broth, water or a little more wine. Reduce heat to minimum, cover and cook for approximately one hour. Then carefully turn the meat and cook under the same conditions for another additional hour.
In the meantime, we can get busy starting to prepare the mashed potatoes (see below).
After approximately two hours of cooking (if it is an ossobuco from an adult animal) the meat should be very tender. The time can be reduced to about 90 minutes when using a veal shank.
Before serving, we must reduce and thicken the sauce:
To do this, reserve the meat, strain the sauce and continue cooking in the pan. The flour added at the beginning will thicken the sauce, while it reduces.
It is important to correct the salt at this time and not before. If we did it too early, the reduction of the liquid would make the salt concentration much higher at the end of cooking.
Other options for a spectacular sauce:
- Remove the pan from the heat, add a few cubes of very cold butter and stir until combined. The fat molecules will emulsify with the sauce, giving it a brighter color.
- Instead of butter, we can also add two squares of dark chocolate, which will give a very classy touch to the sauce.
When the sauce is ready, return the meat to the pan and heat everything together for a few minutes. Serve over a bed of mashed potatoes and sprinkle with a little chopped parsley on top.
How to prepare the mashed potatoes:
Peel and boil the potatoes in salted water until they are tender and can be easily pierced with a knife (approximately 15 minutes). Strain and reduce them to a puree, either with a fork, a vegetable mill, etc. Optionally, add a little cold butter to make it creamier, and then add some milk until you obtain the consistency you prefer. Adjust with salt and pepper.
Make sure to prepare the puree when the meat is almost ready, so that everything can ideally be served very hot.
