The girl & the fig is a fabulous restaurant in the town of Sonoma. All of their ingredients are fresh and local. They shared this incredible recipe with me. What an impressive holiday meal this would be! Enjoy!
Braised Pork Shank:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Season the pork shanks heavily with salt and black pepper. Over medium heat add blended oil to a hot sauté pan. Place the shanks in the pan and sear until they are all browned on all sides. Over medium heat, add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic to a braising pan with 2 cups of white wine. Bring to a boil and reduce until almost dry. Add the seared shanks to the braising pan. Add the bayleaf, peppercorns and thyme. Add the pork stock to just cover the shanks and vegetables. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and cook in the oven for 1-1 ½ hours or until the shanks are just tender. Remove from oven and cool completely. Remove the shanks from the braising liquid and set aside keeping warm. With a fine mesh sieve, strain the braising liquid and skim any remaining fat from the top. Add the remaining 2 cups of white wine to a large saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and continue to reduce until almost dry. Add the braising liquid and simmer while continuing to skim off any fat that forms on the top. Reduce to a thickened consistency.
Soft Polenta:
Add the water, milk, olive oil and butter to a medium saucepan, season with the salt and bring to a simmer. While stirring with a wire whip, slowly add the polenta and beat into the liquid. Simmer and continue to stir for 10 minutes. Add the Parmesan cheese, adjust the seasoning, continuing to stir, cover and keep warm.
Broccolini:
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the broccolini until tender, and shock in an ice water bath until cool and drain. Heat the butter in a large sauté pan over medium low heat until melted; add the broccolini, season to taste and heat till warm.
Horseradish Gremolata:
Mix the parsley, chopped capers, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, and grated horseradish. Season with sea salt.
To Serve:
Spoon the warm polenta into the center of a warm bowl, place a sixth of the warm broccolini onto the polenta, top with a braised pork shank. Nap the shank with the white wine braising sauce and garnish with the gremolata.
Ingredients
Braised Pork Shank
- 6 Pork Hind Shanks (we prefer Niman Ranch)
- salt & black pepper
- ¼ cup blended oil
- 1 yellow onion, quartered
- 2 stalk celery, rough chop
- 1 small carrot, peeled, chopped
- 4 crushed cloves of garlic
- 4 cups white wine
- 1 bay leaf
- 5 black peppercorns
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 2 quarts pork or chicken stock
Soft Polenta
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups milk
- Salt
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup polenta
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- white pepper
Broccolini
- 3 bunches broccolini, tough stems removed
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- salt and white pepper
Horseradish Gremolata
- 1 bunch Italian flat leaf parsley, cleaned from the stems
- 3 tablespoons capers, chopped
- 2 lemons, zested
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 horseradish root, peeled & grated
- Sea salt