Indigenous American Osso Bucco, Part Two

A couple of days ago, I started the Indigenous American Osso Bucco. No, it wasn't in the slow cooker all this time. It did get the marathon treatment, though. 14 hours on the #2 (of 5) setting.

I had such a long day, then got invited to our Controller's going away party, which got me home (after hitting the gym) at 10pm or so. Too late for osso bucco.

I decided on some simple zucchini for the vegetable, but chayote would also have been good. I don't buy them very often because they are $1.50 each, and I can eat 4 or 5 of them. What a scam... Summer squash is like $1.50 per pound, and these are that much per. Anyhow, enough of me being cheap.

Here's a reminder...

Indigenous American Osso Bucco

1 lb beef shanks (two small ones)
3 small carrots, whole
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, sliced into rings
1 cup water
1 cup chicken stock or broth
10 juniper berries
1/2 cup frozen cranberries
2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp dried sage
1 tsp dried rosemary
2 bay leaves


Zucchini

2 medium zucchini
1 tsp olive oil
salt

I quartered the zucchini lengthwise, then sliced each quarter in half, lengthwise, again. Then, I cut each spear into three segments. Bitesized.

In a saucepan, over medium high heat, I sauteed the squash in the olive oil.

Meanwhile, I reheated half the beef shanks and half the liquid (and a couple of carrots, of course) in a covered bowl. I just nuked it for two minutes, then left it covered for another two or three.

When people say the microwave dries out the meat, it's nonsense. Cooking it too dry in the first place, cooling it without liquid, then overheating it is what kills it. Don't do those things.

I wanted the squash a little more done, so when it had browned enough, I added the meat on top, poured the liquid over the squash and covered it all for two or three minutes. Low simmer.

I had to use a big shallow soup bowl for this. It was really, really good!


Pros:

The meat was fall off the bone tender
The cranberries added a really subtle fruitiness to the broth which was different from the normal wine taste. The were a little sour to eat, but they looked good.
The broth was so good that I wish I had more
The zucchini went well
Crockpot/slow cooker convenience
Mmm... marrow


Cons:

Too much "stuff" floating around. The cranberries were fine, as I could choose to each them or not, but the juniper berries and onion pieces were too much to avoid all the surprises. Cheesecloth and quartered onions, next time.
Not enough broth