There’s a certain romance to dishes that ask you to slow down, and braised beef shanks are just that. Hours in the oven transform a humble cut into something luxurious, the meat giving way to the touch of a fork and bathed in a sauce of red wine, demi-glace, and sweet root vegetables. Creamy polenta, enriched with chèvre and Reggiano, forms a velvety bed for the braise. While roasted carrots and parsnips glazed with honey add brightness and a touch of earthiness. Confit garlic weaves through it all with its soft, caramelized depth, turning what could be a heavy winter dish into one layered with nuance and warmth. Beef Shank with Confit Garlic and Polenta is a meal that feels celebratory but deeply grounding. The kind of cooking that makes a table feel abundant, generous, and worth gathering around.
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Beef Shank with Confit Garlic and Polenta
Description
It’s a meal that feels celebratory but deeply grounding.
Ingredients
Confit Garlic
- 12 cloves garlic
- Olive oil (enough to cover garlic)
Beef Shanks
- 2 beef shanks from Pasture Perfect Beef
- 1 ½ liters dry red wine
- 1 qt demi-glace (homemade or store bought, see below)
- 3 large onions
- 4–5 carrots from Haffey Family Farm
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 bulb garlic
- Rosemary, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorn sachet
Polenta
- 1½ cups coarse cornmeal
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 oz chèvre
- 4 oz Reggiano
- 2 oz butter
Roasted Carrots & Parsnips
- 1 lb each carrots and parsnips (Haffey Family Farm)
Demi-Glace – Glace de Viande
- 50 lb beef bones (Pasture Perfect Farm)
- 10 lb onions
- 5 lb carrots
- 5 lb celery (Haffey Family Farms)
- 3 bulbs garlic
- Rosemary, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorn sachet
- Vegetable trimmings – e.g., mushroom stems, asparagus ends, fennel tops, broccolini leaves, etc.
- 15–20 lb chicken feet (Farm 57)
Instructions
Confit Garlic
- Simmer on low for 2–2½ hours
- Let cool and store in oil.
- Once you’ve used the garlic cloves, be sure to use the oil to sauté things, make dressing, hummus, etc.
Beef Shanks
- Reduce wine in a stock pot by half. Add demi-glace. Bring to a simmer, season.
- Place shanks in a Dutch oven, add diced vegetables and sachet.
- Pour liquid over tails and vegetables. Add 1–2 cups water — enough to almost cover shanks.
- Braise in a 275 degree oven until pull-off-the-bone tender (4–5 hours).
- Strain braising liquid through a chinois into a pot, reduce to thicken.
Polenta
- Bring water to a boil, slowly add cornmeal while whisking; reduce heat to low and stir with a wooden spoon for 20 minutes.
- Add cream and cheeses, continue to stir until incorporated.
- Finish with butter. Season with salt and pepper, serve as soon as possible.
Roasted Carrots & Parsnips
- Toss in 2 tbps olive oil
- Roast in 480 degree oven to desired doneness.
- Season to taste, glaze with honey (Highland Honeybees) 2 minutes before removing from oven.
Demi-Glace – Glace de Viande
- Place beef bones in a stock pot, cover with water, bring to a simmer and leave there for 18 hours.
- Remove from heat, strain into a new pot leaving the bones in the original pot. Recover the bones with water, simmer for 18 hours.
- Add the herbs, vegetables, and trimmings to the beef stock and simmer for 6 hours. After which, strain the vegetables from the stock and continue to reduce.
- After the second wash has simmered for 18 hours, strain and discard the beef bones. Then combine the second wash with the beef stock. Add the chicken feet and simmer for 6-8 hours to reduce and thicken. Strain through a chinois and discard the chicken feet.
Recipe by Philip Call, Jillian’s Restaurant
Styling by Keith Recker
Photography by Dave Bryce
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Try more wonderful fall farm-to-table recipes from Chef Philip Call:
Gnocchi with Braised Oxtail and Collard Greens
Rainbow Trout with Fennel and Mushrooms
