Braised Lamb Shanks with North African Spices | America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon anise seeds
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 8 allspice berries
• 8 cardamom pods
• 15 black peppercorns
• 1 cinnamon stick (1/2 inch length)
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/8 teaspoon mace
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 6 lamb shanks, 3/4 to 1 pound each, trimmed of excess fat and fell (thin, white papery covering), see illustration
• Table salt
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 medium onions, sliced thick
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces
• 2 medium ribs celery, cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces
• 4 medium cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 ancho chiles or 2 to 3 fresh jalapeño peppers, stemmed, seeded, and minced
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• ground black pepper