This is my adaptation of a Guy Grossi recipe. Another slow cook one. I love a dish that simmers away slowly releases all of its flavours all the while wafting amazing aromas throughout the house to remind you what is in store later. This recipe calls for not one but two bottles of wine to be opened. So,if you feel compelled to undertake some quality control whilst you are cooking,it would be perfectly understandable.
Ingredients
Olive oil
1 small brown onion chopped roughly
1 clove garlic crushed
100 gr dried porcini mushrooms soaked in water for an hour
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup dry white wine
1 kg osso bucco veal pieces
2 stalks basil (leaves removed)
2 stalks sage (leaves removed)
2 star anise
¼ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
Really good Italian penne
Fresh parmesan
Method
Preheat your oven to 160 C
Lightly dust the osso bucco pieces with seasoned flour and brown in a large heavy casserole dish. Remove the veal and set aside. Sauté the onion and garlic over a medium heat for five minutes or until the onions begin to soften and turn translucent. Add the porcini mushrooms and tomato paste and cook,stirring the mixture,until the tomato paste begins to caramelise (about 3 minutes). Add the wine and mix well bringing it to a simmer. Return the veal to the dish and add the herbs and spices. Cook covered in the oven for 3 hours.
Allow to cool slightly and remove the veal pieces from the casserole dish. Using two forks,shred the meat and return to mixture.
Heat through on stovetop over low heat,season to taste with salt and pepper and combine with al dente penne scattered with fresh parmesan.
This dish can also be adapted a couple of ways. For a less intense flavour add some tomato passata (this can also be done to stretch the dish if you end up with more mouths to feed than anticipated). I have also used the sauce to make a filling for tortellini. After shredding the meat put it and the porcini mushrooms in a food processor and blend adding a small amount of the left over liquid at a time until you get a paste like consistency. The remainder of the cooking liquid can be reserved add used on top of the tortellini.
A dish such as this needs a gutsy,spicy Italian red.
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