Middle Eastern match-up

Making the connection between food production and the changing seasons is traditional in many parts of the world. Produce not only tastes better at its peak when grown in season, it is cheaper to buy and matches well with other foods that are grown at the same time and from the same region.

In France, many farmers feed their animals food grown near their farms to retain the terroir. This element of local food production is treated very seriously and is not to be tampered with.

I cannot claim regional terroir in this recipe, but the autumn combination of fruit, lamb, rosewater and pomegranate delivers a seasonally matched Middle Eastern influence.

To allow the lamb to infuse with flavour and make the most of these delicate and subtle ingredients, prepare this dish one or two days before you're going to eat it.

Cauliflower puree is an elegant dish to have with the lamb shanks. Jewelled couscous also works well.

Debbie Skelton is a Canberra food writer, debsravingrecipes.blogspot.com.

Lamb shanks with pear and pomegranate

Serves 6

3 tbsp olive oil

6 lamb shanks

1 cup onion, roughly chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

5 garlic cloves

2 tsp cardamom, ground

2 cinnamon sticks

5 cups pomegranate juice

5 pears, halved

2 tsp rosewater

¼⁄ cup mint, chopped

¼⁄ cup parsley, chopped

¼⁄ cup pomegranate seeds

½⁄ cup pine nuts, toasted

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 160C. Heat three tablespoons of olive oil in a large ovenproof frypan or dutch oven on the stove top. Brown the lamb shanks on all sides, three at a time. Set aside.

Add the onion, carrots and garlic to the pan and fry until lightly browned. Add the ground cardamom and cinnamon sticks and season with salt. Cook, stirring for about one minute.

Add the pomegranate juice and three cups of water, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Add the reserved lamb shanks to the pan, arranging the meatier part of the shanks to be submerged in the cooking liquid. Cover with a lid or with a couple of layers of foil, and transfer the pan to the oven. Cook, basting and turning the shanks each hour, until the meat is tender and almost falling from the bone. This will take about three hours.

When done, remove from the oven, uncover pan and add the pears, pushing them down to submerge in the cooking liquid. Let cool to room temperature, and cover and chill overnight.

Remove the pan from the fridge. Scrape off and discard the fat that has set on the top.

Preheat the oven to 200C. Heat the lamb mixture over a medium heat on the stove top to soften the liquid until warmed through.

Gently remove the shanks from the liquid and transfer them to a large-rimmed baking tray. Spoon half a cup of cooking liquid over the top. Place the tray into the preheated oven and roast the shanks, basting with the juices until glazed, about 10 minutes.

Gently remove the pears from the cooking liquid and set aside. Strain the remaining liquid through a sieve, reserving the liquid and discarding the vegetables.

Return the strained liquid to the frypan and add the rosewater. Cook until the sauce reduces and thickens, about 10 minutes. Add the pears to the frying pan to reheat through.

Serve the lamb shanks with the pears and a drizzle of sauce, topped with the herbs, pomegranate seeds and pine nuts.