Winter brings with it the yearning for slowly cooked comfort foods and there is nothing more comforting than lamb shanks that just melt in your mouth. The combination of the honey and spice blend, add extra dimension to this dish which is complimented by the creamy parsnip mash. Try sprinkling a little diced preserved lemon and coriander on the shanks just prior to serving.

Ingredients...

6 organic lamb shanks
1 cup sherry or rice wine
2 tbs tomato sauce
1 tbs oyster sauce
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp English mustard
1 tsp horseradish
1 tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp five spice powder
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp crushed ginger
½ cup local honey
1 tbs cornflour to thicken
1 tbs water
Salt & pepper to taste

Mash:
2 large potatoes
2 large parsnips
1 tbs butter
2 tbs cream 

Method... 

Preheat oven to 180°C. Place lambs shanks in a baking dish. Mix together sherry/rice wine, tomato sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, English mustard, horseradish, turmeric, five spice powder, garlic and ginger. Pour over lamb shanks. Cover with foil and bake at 180°C until shanks are tender but not falling off the bone (approximately 2 hours), turning after about an hour. Remove from oven.  Mix cornflour and water into a paste and add to the sauce until thick. Stir in the honey then place back in the oven, uncovered for a further 5 minutes on each side.

To make the mash, boil the peeled and chopped potatoes and parsnips in water. When the potatoes and parsnips are soft, drain away the water. Add cream and butter and mash together until smooth.

Serve shanks on a bed of mash with the sticky sauce coating the shanks.

Serves 6