Veal classics: osso buco

Veal is a festive dish, which has a long pedigree and benefits from the use of vegetable stock and tomato sauce stored in the freezer. It was customarily served at European aristocratic tables along with fowls as a way to assert status: the commoners would hesitate to sacrifice a young animal and hunting was a sport reserved to the nobles. Because of its youth when slaughtered a calf has very little fat. The sauce has to offset the leanness and becomes the star of the dish.
Italians own veal, although the French who love their Blanquette beg to differ (more about the latter next week). From the scaloppini thinly cut by butchers in the ham machine to the thick shanks filled with opulent marrow, a whole scale of taste is explored. The Freudian slip that the eponymous hero of the Osso buco, (literally empty bone) is, says it all: marrow is what gets eaten first. For me it was love at first taste…at Cipriani in New York, the most Italian of cities outside the Peninsula. Ever since, I have tried to duplicate the melting flavor of the meat enriched by the saffron infused tomato sauce. The savor of the dish is further enhanced by the hot/cold brought by the minced lemony herbed addition, the gremolata, at the very last minute.
As any dish, which benefits from a long simmering time, it is easy to adapt to the slow cooking method.
My recipe takes some liberty with the original. Traditionally it is served with saffron risotto, the creamy sauce of which clashes to my taste with the delicate broth. I prefer to substitute pasta and integrate the saffron thread to the meat preparation. For the sake of lightness, I forgo the dredging of the meat with flour prior to the browning first phase. Gremolata is a blend of garlic, parsley and lemon zest. I personally find fresh uncooked garlic too strong for the dish. Omitting it allows the saffron to join the perfume symphony and enrich the base citrus note.

Osso buco
(Easy, Preparation: 15 minutes, Cooking time: 3 hours largely unattended, A little pricey)

Ingredients
4 veal shanks tied with kitchen twine
Salt and freshly ground pepper
¼ cup olive oil
1 small onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup dry white wine with one pinch Saffron
1 carrot cubed
1 slice celery root or a branch of celery peeled and diced
1 cup frozen tomato sauce defrosted
Gremolata:
1 bunch flat parsley
The zest of a lemon

Material:
Slow cooker or large saucepan and cover
Set of tongues
Wood spoon
Food processor

Pour the olive oil in the aluminum inset of the slow cooker, or the saucepan and place on the low flame of the gas. Sprinkle salt and pepper generously on the shanks before stir-frying the meat. Cook until well browned on both sides for about 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the inset with the tongues and set aside.
Add the onions, garlic, cubes of carrots and celery and cook for five minutes, stirring all the time. Add the saffron wine and bring to a boil. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Remove from the gas.
Add the reserved meat to the content of the slow cooker inset, place inside the slow cooker and cook for three hours on the high setting.
Just before serving, place all the ingredients of the gremolata in the food processor and mince. Sprinkle on top of the meat and propose a side dish of fresh linguine pasta. Serve with the sauce.