Enjoy a quick meal of pressure cooked red wine lamb shanks that taste like they were made tender and flavorful from hours of low and slow cooking.
Pressure cookers – what a great invention! Particularly for those of us who toil from 9-5 and frankly don’t have the energy to start cooking at the end of a tiring day.
I bought my first pressure cooker about a year ago through a Fly Buys scheme – you know, where you trade points for rewards… Well, it turned out to be a real dog and, much to my disgust, it crapped out a few months later. I decided that’d be the last time I bought a pressure cooker…
Okay, I was a bit hasty with that decision as it turned out, because I happened upon a much more reputable model at my favorite homeware store, marked down by a massive 60%. I figured at that price it was worth the punt, so I bit the bullet.
And, it’s been a love affair ever since! I’ve been making lots of super quick meals (chicken soup and bone broth are regulars) and just recently I tried out this recipe for Lamb Shanks with Red Wine and Garlic Sauce. Taking only 45 minutes from start to finish, you’d think this baby had been slow cooked for hours, it is simply that delicious.
Traditional lamb shanks might require hours of slow cooking to achieve the desired tenderness. However, with a pressure cooker, you can achieve the same results in a fraction of the time, making it a more efficient choice for those looking for gourmet results without the extensive wait. This method breaks down the connective tissues quickly, resulting in succulent, melt-in-your-mouth morsels of meat.
We’re talking tender meat falling off the bones here folks, doused in a seriously tasty sauce combining red wine, stock, garlic, tomato paste and rosemary. It was so good, I doubled the quantity and suggest you do too.
Lamb shanks have a naturally impressive presentation. When plated with the glossy, wine-infused sauce and perhaps accompanied by a side of creamy mashed potatoes or steamed vegetables, it’s a dish that looks as good as it tastes.
Step By Step Guide to Making Pressure Cooker Red Wine Lamb Shanks
Preparation:
Trim any excess fat from the lamb shanks, if desired.
Season each shank generously with salt and pepper.
Browning the Lamb:
In your pressure cooker, heat the olive oil over medium to high heat.
Once the oil is shimmering, add the lamb shanks.
Brown the shanks on all sides, ensuring they get a nice, golden color.
Garlic:
After the shanks are browned, add the smashed garlic cloves to the pressure cooker.
Sauté them until they are lightly browned, ensuring they don’t burn.
Adding Sauce Ingredients:
Pour in the chicken stock and red wine.
Add the tomato paste and rosemary, stirring well to ensure the tomato paste dissolves smoothly into the liquid.
Pressure Cooking:
Close the pressure cooker lid securely and set it to bring the pot up to full pressure.
Once the desired pressure is achieved, reduce the heat to maintain pressure and cook for 30 minutes.
Releasing Pressure:
After the 30 minutes, turn off the heat and allow the pressure to release naturally.
This might take an additional 10-15 minutes.
Preparing the Sauce:
Once the pressure is fully released, safely open the lid.
Carefully remove the lamb shanks and transfer them to a serving dish, covering them with foil to keep them warm.
Return the pressure cooker to the stove, set to medium-high heat.
Boil the sauce for about 5 minutes, allowing it to reduce and thicken.
If you’re short on time or prefer a thicker sauce, you can whisk in some cornstarch slurry (1-2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 1-2 teaspoons of cold water) to help it thicken faster.
Finishing Touches:
Once the sauce reaches your desired consistency, whisk in the butter until fully incorporated.
Then, stir in the balsamic vinegar, adjusting the quantity to your taste.
Serving:
Plate the lamb shanks and pour some of the sauce over each.
Serve with the remaining sauce on the side, so diners can add more if desired, and some creamy mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
Pressure Cooker Red Wine Lamb Shanks
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
Description
Enjoy a quick meal of pressure cooked red wine lamb shanks that taste like they were made tender and flavorful from hours of low and slow cooking.
Ingredients
For the lamb:
- 2 lbs (1 kilo) lamb shanks
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 10 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
For the sauce: (Note: This is a double quantity)
- 1 cup chicken stock (or preferred broth)
- 1 cup Pinot Noir wine (or another red wine)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried or fresh rosemary (or another favorite herb)
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- 1–2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, to taste
Instructions
Preparation:
Trim any excess fat from the lamb shanks, if desired.
Season each shank generously with salt and pepper.
Browning the Lamb:
In your pressure cooker, heat the olive oil over medium to high heat.
Once the oil is shimmering, add the lamb shanks.
Brown the shanks on all sides, ensuring they get a nice, golden color.
Garlic:
After the shanks are browned, add the smashed garlic cloves to the pressure cooker.
Sauté them until they are lightly browned, ensuring they don’t burn.
Adding Sauce Ingredients:
Pour in the chicken stock and red wine.
Add the tomato paste and rosemary, stirring well to ensure the tomato paste dissolves smoothly into the liquid.
Pressure Cooking:
Close the pressure cooker lid securely and set it to bring the pot up to full pressure.
Once the desired pressure is achieved, reduce the heat to maintain pressure and cook for 30 minutes.
Releasing Pressure:
After the 30 minutes, turn off the heat and allow the pressure to release naturally.
This might take an additional 10-15 minutes.
Preparing the Sauce:
Once the pressure is fully released, safely open the lid.
Carefully remove the lamb shanks and transfer them to a serving dish, covering them with foil to keep them warm.
Return the pressure cooker to the stove, set to medium-high heat.
Boil the sauce for about 5 minutes, allowing it to reduce and thicken.
If you’re short on time or prefer a thicker sauce, you can whisk in some cornstarch slurry (1-2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 1-2 teaspoons of cold water) to help it thicken faster.
Finishing Touches:
Once the sauce reaches your desired consistency, whisk in the butter until fully incorporated.
Then, stir in the balsamic vinegar, adjusting the quantity to your taste.
Serving:
Plate the lamb shanks and pour some of the sauce over each.
Serve with the remaining sauce on the side, so diners can add more if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
*depending on your cooker, you might need to adjust the cooking time to suit.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 50 mins
- Category: Main
- Method: Pressure Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 lamb shank
- Calories: 720
- Sugar: 5g
- Sodium: 700mg
- Fat: 33g
- Saturated Fat: 13g
- Unsaturated Fat: 14g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 14g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 60g
- Cholesterol: 170mg
Could you please tell me what the asterisk beside cooking time means?
Could I leave it for 1 hour in the pressure cooker?
Regards,
Matt
Hi Matt. In my own blog post, the asterisk related to a note which said that depending on your cooker, you might need to adjust the cooking time to suit. Personally, I cooked the lamb for a further 10 minutes, i.e. 40 minutes in total (rather than the suggested 30 minutes). After that, you take the pot off the heat and let the pressure naturally release, which takes another 10-15 minutes, taking the actual cooking time close to an hour. Hope that helps.
Whats the asterisk mean after “30 minutes”????
See answer above.
Absolutely delicious!!
How well do the tendons cook down?… Im considering using a pressure cooker for deer shanks, instead of lamb. Do you think the cooker will melt the tendons (which in a slow cooker takes 6 hours)?
Hi Taylor. In lamb, the tendons cook down beautifully. I haven’t cooked with venison before, but I imagine it’s basically the same process. If you look at the reply to the comment I made above about adding an extra 10 minutes to the cooking time, that might be a place to start. If it doesn’t cook it down adequately enough, you’ll obviously need to cook for longer. I’ve done a quick check online, and others report that venison shanks can be pressure-cooked in around 30 minutes. Good luck!
Wow! What a great recipe. Best lamb shanks I remember having. Tender and flavorful.
We had 2 lbs lamb shanks from Whole Foods. As others have said, the 30 mins cooking time is too short however. We had to return them and cook 15 mins longer.
Hi Marijo. Yes, it does require longer cooking time I found. Great to hear you enjoyed it.
Hi, I was wondering if I could use this recipe for a leg of lamb, and how that may alter the recipe or the cook time?
Hi Deirdre. Here’s a link to a pressure cooker recipe for a leg of lamb- https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/pressure-cooker-7-hour-leg-of-lamb-in-90-minutes/
As a lamb lover, I can safely say that this is delicious!
Turned out really well, added some chili for more spice.