Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.

Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.

If you’ve ever had lamb shank, then you know how “fall-off-the-bone tender” and insanely delicious this dish can be when cooked properly—especially when braised—such as this Sous Vide Braised Lamb Shank recipe from ChefSteps, or this Sous Vide Honey-Rosemary Lamb Shank flavored with aromatics like garlic cloves, bay leaves, and olive oil along with an Italian red wine sauce. (Drooling yet?)

Why Cook Lamb Shank with Sous Vide?

Since lamb shanks are usually found on menus at higher-end restaurants, they can seem a little intimidating to make at home. Even if you are determined to try cooking them at home, they usually require extensive preparation time and lots of babysitting. For example, when making braised lamb shanks on the stove, you’ll have to start cooking over high heat and lower the temperature to medium-high heat, and then low heat when the braising process starts. It takes about 2-3 hours to cook lamb shanks on the stove, and you don’t want to walk away from it during that time period.

However, cooking sous vide takes all that hassle out of the way.

48-Hour Sous Vide Lamb Shank Recipe - dry rub

The two major benefits to sous vide cooking are: 1) this genius machine allows you to safely walk away from it after the recipe time and temperature are set. The precise temperature makes it pretty much impossible to overcook your food. It turns tough cuts of meat into melt-in-your-mouth goodies without you even lifting a finger. 2) It locks in more juice and flavor into your recipes (by way of the vacuum-sealed sous vide bags).

48-Hour Sous Vide Lamb Shank Recipe - coat the meat

That said, to make cooking lamb shanks even more enjoyable and easier, I came up with this lamb shank dish with a Moroccan-inspired blend of spices, including cumin, nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne, and coriander. All you need to do is to make the dry rub and coat your lamb with it before putting it in a bag to sous vide. The hands-on time is only 10 minutes, and there’s no need to brown the lamb beforehand or sear it after cooking. I’d say that learning to cook sous vide is probably one of the simplest yet best cooking techniques you can pick up.

48-Hour Sous Vide Lamb Shank Recipe - bag it up
Click here to download

It does require a bit of a time commitment, though—it’s a 48-hour recipe. But you don’t have to babysit at all and rest assured that when the time is up, your lamb shank will be tender, juicy, flavorful, and cooked to perfection.

48-Hour Sous Vide Lamb Shank Recipe

This 48-hour sous vide lamb shank is perfect if you’re looking for a big flavorful recipe to share with your guests or something different for a quiet night in with a “gourmet cooking” vibe. You can pour the lamb juice over some mashed potatoes or make a sweet potato puree (like I did) to complete a whole meal. Pair the lamb shanks with a glass of merlot or a cabernet sauvignon, and you’re all set!

Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.
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Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.

Easy 48-Hour Sous Vide Lamb Shank

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 4 reviews
  • Author: Sharon Chen
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 48 hours
  • Total Time: 48 hours 10 minutes
  • Yield: 2 servings 1x
  • Category: Main Course
  • Method: Sous Vide
  • Cuisine: Moroccan
  • Diet: Gluten Free
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Description

Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 lamb shanks

For the dry rub:

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
  • Fresh thyme sprigs (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat water to 150°F (66°C) using a sous vide machine. (I use the Anova sous vide precision cooker.)
  2. Prepare lamb shanks by rinsing under cold water. Pat dry with paper towels and set them aside.
  3. Mix the dry rub ingredients on a big plate. Now, prepare two sous vide bags by folding the top of each bag back over itself to form a hem. This will prevent lamb seasonings from getting on the edges of the bag. Set aside.
  4. Place the lamb shanks on the plate and rub the mixture all over them.
  5. Slide each lamb shank into one prepared bag. Add a couple thyme sprigs if desired. Unfold the edge before closing the bag. Vacuum seal the bags using either a vacuum sealer or a hand pump.
  6. Lower your bagged lamb shanks into the preheated water bath, making sure the lamb is under the waterline. Cover your sous vide container with a lid to prevent the water from evaporating too fast. Set the timer for 48 hours. Check your water level a few times during cooking. Add more warm water if needed.
  7. When the lamb is done, transfer them from the sous vide bags to a serving plate and enjoy immediately. I served them with sweet potato puree and the lamb juices from cooking.

Notes

  • It’s better to use heavy-duty sous vide vacuum bags instead of Ziploc bags for this recipe because of the long hours. Ziploc plastic bags might not be strong enough to securely hold your lamb for 48 hours, even at the low temperature of 150°F (66°C).
Super easy, Moroccan-inspired sous vide lamb shank, slow-cooked for 48 hours, this gourmet dish only requires 10 minutes of hands-on time.
Click here to download

About the Author

Sharon Chen, StreetSmart Kitchen

Sharon Chen is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and author of the Complete Sous Vide Cookbook. She believes food not only brings healing but also connection. As the creator of StreetSmart Kitchen, she aims to make meal prep easier than ever and help you find balance, ease, joy, and simplicity in the kitchen as you improve your well-being.