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1
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.
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2
Rub the shanks with salt and pepper, then place them meaty-side up in a roasting pan.
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3
Roast for 25 minutes, or until nicely browned.
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4
Remove from oven.
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5
Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees.
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6
Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.
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7
Add the vegetables and garlic and saute, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables soften, then caramelize.
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8
Stir in the thyme, rosemary, fennel and coriander seeds, the peppercorns, bay leaf and parsley.
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9
Increase the heat to high, add the wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
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10
Boil until the liquid has reduced by one third.
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11
Pour over the lamb, spreading the vegetables over, but not completely covering, the shanks.
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12
Add enough of the water, chicken broth or lamb stock to almost cover the meat.
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13
Cover the pan with aluminum foil and roast for 7 hours, basting with the pan juices every hour or so, and adding liquid as needed.
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14
Remove the foil during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
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15
At this point, the lamb should be fork-tender and falling off the bone.
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16
Remove the shanks from the pan and let cool to room temperature.
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17
Strain the braising liquid, pushing on the vegetables to get all of their goodness and skim off the fat. Best to refrigerate overnight and skim off the solidified fat.
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18
When ready to serve, slowly reheat the shanks in the braising liquid.
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19
To serve, roast your favorite root vegetables and spoon onto serving plates, center a lamb shank on each plate and spoon a little of the braising liquid over the top.
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20
Garnish with parsley, if desired.
