Red Wine Braised Reindeer Shank

Ingredients

• 1.6 kg Pokka Reindeer Shank With Bone
• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 onion
• 2 carrots
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 5 dl red wine
• 3 dl vegetable stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 5 juniper berries, crushed
• 250 g pearl onions or small shallots
• 15 g butter, for the onions
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 kg floury potatoes
• 2 dl milk
• 40 g butter, for the mash

Method

1. If the shanks are frozen, thaw them in the fridge for 24 hours. Heat the oven to 160 °C. Pat the shanks dry and season with salt and pepper.
2. Brown the shanks well on all sides in the oil in a large casserole, 8–10 minutes. Lift them out.
3. Fry the chopped onion and carrots in the same pot for 5 minutes. Stir in the crushed garlic and tomato purée, pour in the wine and boil for 3 minutes. Add the stock, bay leaf, thyme and juniper and return the shanks to the pot.
4. Cover and braise in the oven for 2½–3 hours, turning the shanks once, until the meat is very tender and pulls away from the bone.
5. Meanwhile, peel the pearl onions; a minute in boiling water loosens the skins. Fry them in the butter for the onions with the sugar over a medium heat for 10–12 minutes, until golden and soft.
6. Peel the potatoes and boil them in salted water for 20–25 minutes, until soft. Drain and mash with the warm milk and the butter for the mash. Season with salt.
7. Lift the shanks onto a warm dish. Strain the braising liquid into a pan, skim off the fat and boil until reduced to a glossy sauce, about 3–4 dl. Season, add the pearl onions and serve the shanks on the mash with the sauce.