This is wonderful cut of meat to buy. Osso Bucco is traditionally a cut of veal, but we use the name to refer to the same cut, but of beef instead of veal at Radmore. So it’s basically beef shin, cut as a thick steak and left on the bone. It’s an economical choice, and if given the time it needs to cook, has a delightful flavour, whilst not drying out. And cooking on the bone just adds even more to the overall flavour of the dish.

My intention here was to slow cook the Osso Bucco whilst adding more of a summer feel, and Shemins Smoky Mexican Spice blend gave me just the inspiration I needed.

I turned on my slow cooker about 10 in the morning, but this would work equally as well cooking in a low oven all day. I sautéed onions and garlic in a little oil in a hot frying pan, then I added tomato purée, a good quality beef stock (or a stock cube/ pot and water) and when it was all bubbling together I added it to the slow cooker as my base. Then I wiped the bottom of the frying pan and added a little more oil. I generously rubbed the shemins spice all over the Osso Bucco steaks and seared then until they were brown all over. Then I added them to my base sauce in the slow cooker with some chopped tomatoes.

After about 3 hours, I gave everything a turn and stir and added some whole baby carrots and some mixed beans to the slow cooker.

When it was dinnertime, and the beef had been simmering away for about 7-8 hours I skimmed off the fat that had settled on top and removed the bones. The meat had remained in big chunks that were so tender and not at all dry. The smell was intense! And the flavour of Mexico shone through. To serve this, I sliced some tenderstem brocolli into small pieces and stir fried them, then added to the pan  some cooked basmati & quinoa and combined it all. The result was a crunchy and fresh rice that complemented the soft beef perfectly.

Summer stew ✔️