Lamb · Slow cooker adaptation

Melt In Your Mouth Lamb Shanks (Slow Cooker)

An Easter centrepiece from Not Another Cooking Show: lamb shanks braised in red wine and beef stock until the bone marrow seeps into the sauce, sat on a bed of creamy polenta with a scatter of gremolata. Shanks are the affordable cousin of the leg roast, and the slow cooker handles the long lazy stretch.

R By Richard · Adapted from NOT ANOTHER COOKING SHOW · Published 23 June 2026
👁 954.5k source views ❤️ 15.1k source likes
⏱Prep 30 min
🍲Slow cook 8 hr (Low) / 4 hr (High)
🍽Serves 4
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Stephen at Not Another Cooking Show cooks this one as an Easter centrepiece: lamb shanks seared off, then braised in red wine, beef stock and aromatics in a low oven for three to three and a half hours. The slow cooker handles the long braise comfortably, leaving the hob for the sear, the wine reduction and the final sauce mount with butter and lemon. Served over creamy polenta with a gremolata garnish to cut the richness. Quantities for several ingredients are not stated in the source, so this recipe leaves them null and notes them in extractionNotes.

Slow cooker notes: Source is a Dutch oven braise. Adapted to the slow cooker by keeping the sear, the wine reduction and the flour-tomato-paste base on the hob (these build the fond and colour that Stephen leans on), then transferring everything to the slow cooker for the long braise. Slow cookers steam rather than brown, so the uncovered second stage in the source cannot be replicated inside the pot. Instead, lift the shanks at the end, strain the sauce into a saucepan, reduce on the hob until it coats the back of a spoon, then swirl in the cold butter and lemon juice for the final glaze. Liquid is not increased: slow cookers lose very little to evaporation.

Ingredients

Lamb
  • lamb shanks, bone in
  • salt, for seasoning the shanks
  • olive oil, for searing
Braise
  • onion, halved, then each half cut into large rough chunks (skin can be left on, gets strained out)
  • carrots, washed, unpeeled, cut into rough chunks
  • 1 headgarlic, cloves smashed to loosen the paper, kept rough
  • 2 tbsptomato paste
  • plain flour, for thickening
  • 375 mlred wine, let breathe before using
  • rosemary, fresh sprig
  • bay leaf
  • beef stock
Finish
  • cold butter, in a knob, swirled in at the end (add late)
  • lemon juice (add late)
Polenta
  • 1 cupcoarse cornmeal (polenta) (add late)
  • 5 cupswater (add late)
  • salt (add late)
Gremolata
  • gremolata, for garnish (add late)

Method

  1. Roughly chop the onion and carrot into large chunks. Wash them but do not peel; the skins give flavour and get strained out later. Smash a head of garlic to loosen the cloves from their paper.

    ~6 min

  2. Season the lamb shanks all over with salt. Heat a heavy pan on the hob over high heat with a little oil, and sear the shanks on each side to develop colour. The bone makes them awkward to fit, so do your best to get colour where you can.

    ~10 min

  3. Lift the shanks out. Add the onion, carrot and smashed garlic to the same pan and cook on medium high to high for three to five minutes until the edges start to brown.

    ~5 min

  4. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for a minute or two, working it into the vegetables until it starts to caramelise on the pan.

    ~2 min

  5. Sprinkle the plain flour over the vegetables, stir to coat, and cook for two to three minutes to take the raw edge off the flour.

    ~3 min

  6. Pour in the red wine, scraping up the fond from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer and reduce by half. Add the rosemary and bay leaf, then pour in the beef stock and bring back to a simmer. Taste and adjust the salt.

    ~8 min

  7. Tip the vegetables and braising liquid into the slow cooker pot, then nestle the seared lamb shanks down into the liquid.

    ~2 min

  8. Cover and slow cook on Low for 8 hours or on High for 4 hours, until the meat is fork tender and pulling back from the bone.

    ~480 min

  9. In the last 35 to 45 minutes, make the polenta. Bring 5 cups of salted water to a simmer in a saucepan. Whisk in 1 cup of coarse cornmeal in a steady stream, lid on, then check every three to four minutes, whisking to lift anything sticking to the bottom. Switch to a spatula once it thickens. Cook until the cornmeal is fully hydrated, creamy, and not crunchy. Adjust with a quarter cup of water at a time if it tightens.

    ~40 min

  10. Lift the lamb shanks out of the slow cooker and rest them somewhere warm. Strain the braising liquid into a saucepan, pressing the vegetables to extract the flavour, then discard the solids. Reduce the sauce on the hob over high heat until it coats the back of a spoon.

    ~10 min

  11. Off the heat, add a small splash of lemon juice to brighten the sauce, then swirl in a knob of cold butter in tight little circles until it melts and emulsifies. Return the lamb shanks to the sauce and glaze them.

    ~3 min

  12. Spoon a dollop of polenta onto each plate, sit a glazed lamb shank on top, spoon over the glossy sauce and finish with a scatter of gremolata.

    ~3 min

Frequently asked

How many lamb shanks do I need?
Stephen cooks for about four people in the source but never states a shank count. A shank a head is standard, so plan on one per person and scale the braising liquid and vegetables to match.
Do I have to sear the shanks first?
Yes. Slow cookers steam rather than brown, so all the deep, savoury colour in the finished dish comes from the crust you put on the meat and the caramelisation on the vegetables and tomato paste before everything goes in the pot.
Can I use a different red wine?
Stephen uses a Montepulciano because it is Easter, but any dry red you would happily drink will work. Pour in about half a bottle and reduce it by half before adding the stock.
Why reduce the sauce on the hob at the end?
The source does the final reduction uncovered in a hot oven to thicken and glaze. Slow cookers cannot replicate that uncovered stage, so strain the liquid into a saucepan and reduce it on the hob until it coats the back of a spoon, then mount with cold butter and a hit of lemon.
Can I skip the polenta?
Yes. The polenta is a side, not part of the braise. Mashed potato or buttered pappardelle will both carry the sauce well if cornmeal is not your thing.
Extraction notes (transparency): Many quantities not stated in transcript and left null: lamb shank count and weight, onion, carrot, plain flour, beef stock, rosemary, bay leaf, salt, oil for searing, butter for finishing, lemon juice, and the gremolata components. Stephen says 'about four people' so defaultServings is 4. Stated quantities: about a head of garlic, a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste, about half a bottle of red wine (Montepulciano), and the 1:5 polenta to water ratio. The polenta and gremolata are sides; they sit outside the slow cooker section.