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it's 11:25 am, afternoon, i'm drunk already cause i've been making osso buco, so pardon the rough edges in this.

lot's of talk of osso buco, but no recipe, so here it is for you folks who wanna try it. and you should try it. its fucking spectacular. its sexy, it's sultry, it's rich and decadent, it's libertine, it's unctuous and sensual and it's probably the greatest date meal you could ever make, and if i ever actually had a date with a real live woman, i'd make this for her, cause i know i'd get laid afterward. it's that fucking magical.

osso buco means "bone hole" cause you use beef shank with the marrow bone in it. the marrow is the BEST PART, it's the dessert candy portion of the meal.

i just like saying osso buco.

so you get you a beef shank with the marrow bone in it. one shank per person. beef shanks are pretty cheap, which makes this a pretty cool dish.

first you make sure it's room temperature. don't cook cold meat or cold eggs, let them come to room temperature first.

season with salt and pepper (i also use szechuan peppercorns with the pepper, i have no idea if it makes a difference, it probably doesn't)

dredge lightly with flour. just a thin dusting is all you need. sides too.

make sure all your mise en place is in place. diced garlic, celery, red onion. at the side and ready to go.

heat up olive oil in a heavy duty pot that has a lid, take off the lid so you can get inside the pot.

brown the shank(s). really brown them good, a dark, rich patina of brown. smell it as it cooks, you can learn when to turn the meat by the smell after a while. cooking is sensual, use all your senses. its art, not science.

when shanks are browned on both sides, take them out of the pan, put them aside. add more oil, add your mise (onion, garlic, celery) and sautee them up until soft and aromatic.

add a can of tomato paste and sautee it up for a minute or two . yes, fry the fucking tomato paste.

add chopped tomatoes (i roast mine with olive oil, salt, and balsamic first, but you can just chop some up and thrown them in, or use a can of chopped tomatoes, whatever works. it's all good.)

add chicken stock

add red wine, from a bottle of actual wine that is sold for drinking. (and drink a bunch, get drunk, and post on TFP!)

mix it all in, put in a bay leaf or two, some lemon and orange zest, a cinnamon stick, some ground cloves, some ground allspice, some chopped up mushrooms, and finally the browned shanks.

salt and pepper as needed.

oh, and you might wanna add some sugar to counter the acid.

taste it as you go, add what you need to get a rich, balanced flavor. you wanna throw in some basil? rock on. oregano? rock on. you don't even have to do it with tomatoes, you can do the [I]bianco[I] thing. but that's another recipe, sort of.

stir it all up, put the lid on, and cook on low for 3 or so hours. stir and taste it every 20-40 minutes, make sure it's coming along and how you want it. season to get it where you want it. too thick? add stock or water or wine. too thin? let it cook uncovered, it'll reduce.

eat with bread and more wine.