Osso buco alla milanese (Italian)

The ossobuco is a truly scrumptious and deliciously historical dish from Italy. It's not a fast-to-make dinner, but there are good chances that once you make it exactly how it should be prepared, respecting all the steps etc you won't want to have beef any other way. Yes, that includes the comfy burgers. At least that's how I feel after eating it. It's precisely its "slow cook" technique that allows all the flavors to get very friendly with each-other and to mature together into a final harmony that will blow your mind.

When accompanied by a side of risotto alla milanese (with saffron), the ossobuco becomes a glorious Ossobuco alla milanese (what I did here). So, besides the butter-like soft meat and the flavorful roast vegetable bed, the dish contains a golden risotto serving and it's generously sprinkled with gremolata (a raw combination of garlic, parsley, lemon zest). Your taste buds will go mad with joy.

The special ossobuco meat cuts play an important role in the final flavor (because of the large quantity of marrow), so don't even think about replacing them with regular beef pieces. Trust me, it will be worth the extra effort to gather all the precise ingredients. :) 

P.S: It goes perfectly with a sweet red wine. :)
Recipe source and guidance: the lovely Kiss the Cook.

Last year: nothing
Two years ago: nothing
Three years ago: nothing
Four years ago: Potage de garbanzos con chorizo (Spanish).
Five years ago: Turkish baklava.
Six years ago: Endive and apple salad with poppy seed vinaigrette (raw vegan).
Seven years ago: Dagaiku imo (Japanese sweet potatoes with honey and sesame) (vegan).
Eight years ago: Winter wheat berries soup with capers (vegan) and Endive and bacon pasta.

Ingredients (serves 2):

For the osso buco:

• 2 osso buco beef cuts
• 1 medium carrot
• 1 slice of celery root
• 1 red onion
• 1 large bell pepper
• 1/2 of a leek
• 2 spring onions
• 5 cherry tomatoes
• 5-6 garlic cloves
• salt and pepper
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 of a parsley bunch (curly leaf)
• 1-2 tablespoons flour
• 250 ml dry red wine
• 750 ml beef stock
• 1 butter cube
• 4 tablespoons olive oil

For the risotto alla milanese:

• 35-40 ml olive oil
• 2-3 garlic cloves
• 3 g 
  saffron threads
• 250 g arborio rice
• 230 ml dry white wine
• 500 ml chicken stock
• salt and pepper
• a cube of butter
• 50 g grated Parmesan

For the gremolata:

• 1/2 of a parsley bunch (curly leaf)
• 4-5 garlic cloves
• freshly grated zest from 1 lemon

First of all, wash and prepare the veggies:

Cut them all in bite-sized cubes. Let them aside.
Melt the butter in a large frying pan:

Unwrap the meat:

Wash it, pat it dry. Mix the flour with salt and pepper and coat the meat pieces with it. Put them in the melted butter and start frying them.

After 4-5 minutes turn and brown the other side too:

Remove the meat from the pan and put it on a plate. Let aside. Crush the garlic and put it in the pan (in the butter that remained there). Also add the chopped onion:

Let them fry a bit until softened, then add the rest of the veggies:

Add the chopped parsley and the wine to the veggies and let them cook some more, stirring once in a while, for 5 minutes. Put the beef pieces on the veggie bed, pour the beef stock and also add some water if the liquid level is not over everything in the pan:

Cover and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Then put it in the oven (still covered) and cook for 1 and 1/2 hours (careful for the liquid not to get completely absorbed or the ossobuco will be burnt). If the liquid is still present after 1 and 1/2 hours return to the stove and cook, uncovered, just up until the liquid finishes evaporating.
Meanwhile, prepare the risotto (this is the easier version, although skipping a few traditional steps). Put the saffron and chopped garlic in the olive oil:

Stir on low heat until the garlic is golden, then add the rice:

Stir and fry for about 5 minutes, then add the wine:

Stir until the liquid is absorbed, then add half of the broth, stir until absorbed, then for the other half as well. When all liquid is absorbed, turn off the heat, season with salt and pepper and add the butter and grated Parmesan:

Mix well and cover. The risotto is done. For the gremolata, just finely chop/crush/grate the ingredients and mix them. When the ossobuco is done, put a meat piece on each plate, with half of the veggies, then half of the risotto and the gremolata sprinkled especially on top of the meat piece:

It's done, dig in! :)