Beef shanks, anyone cook them anymore?

[Caslon]

My mom used to cook beef shanks years ago. No crockpot, just using the oven. I don't even see that cut of beef in stores anymore. She used to get them at our local Navy commissary.

I haven't tried making them myself, but would like to. They came out tender and delicious.
I think they had some bone in them, you can get them boneless too, apparently.

She didn't do a lot of preparation, really. I first need to find out where to buy them.

 

[Hoot]

I haven't seen beef shanks in the our local grocery but I am certain they could get them.
You can cook them much like you would lamb shanks. I use oregano, garlic and salt and pepper on my lamb shanks, wrap in foil and into a slow oven ....say 275 or so for a couple hours. They are mighty good. I expect that beef shanks could be done in much the same way.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I've wanted to make Osso Bucco, but haven't found the shanks.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Is it just where I am or are what used to be considered "cheap" cuts now really expensive? Shanks, ox tail, short ribs, even soup bone (if you can find them) seem to cost close to the same as regular cuts.

 

[Andy M.]

I use beef shanks in a beef barley soup recipe I make. It's delicious. The shanks are readily available in our market.

I use veal shanks for osso buco.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Is it just where I am or are what used to be considered "cheap" cuts now really expensive? Shanks, ox tail, short ribs, even soup bone (if you can find them) seem to cost close to the same as regular cuts.

I find the same thing, what used to be dirt cheap is getting very expensive and difficult to find fresh!

I use beef shanks in a beef barley soup recipe I make. It's delicious. The shanks are readily available in our market.

I use veal shanks for osso buco.

Finding veal shanks is also next to impossible around here. I'm going to have to prod some producers next time the Farmer's Market is open...in the Spring.

 

[taxlady]

Is it just where I am or are what used to be considered "cheap" cuts now really expensive? Shanks, ox tail, short ribs, even soup bone (if you can find them) seem to cost close to the same as regular cuts.

Don't get me started. Chicken wings that cost as much as boneless chicken breast, short ribs @ $8/kg, "osso buco" (1 - 1.5 inch thick slices of shank) @ $11/kg, liver @ $6/kg, celery root (celeriac) @ $2/lb, leaks @$5 for 6 of them, ...

For comparison, lean ground beef is usually $5-6/kg. I pay $3.50-$4.50/kg for a whole pork loin at Costco.

To convert my "/kg" prices to "/lb": divide by 2 and subtract 10%. I'm not awake enough to do it right now

 

[justplainbill]

Kg / 2.2 = Lb (US)
Ground round, chuck, sirloin?

 

[DMerry]

And 1 lb. US = 455 grams or .455 kilogram

There are beef shanks in my grocery store here in Mexico all the time. I also used them in a beef barley soup and now I'm getting ready to try them in another recipe.

 

[taxlady]

Actually, the pounds used for food in the U.S. are avoirdupois and 454 grams. Not to be confused with the pounds used for measuring gold and other precious metals, Troy lbs @ 373 grams (and only 12 Troy ounces).

So, the answer to the old riddle, "What weighs more, a pound of feathers or a pound of gold?" is actually a pound of feathers! But, an ounce of gold weighs more than an ounce of feathers.

 

[joesfolk]

And 1 lb. US = 455 grams or .455 kilogram

There are beef shanks in my grocery store here in Mexico all the time. I also used them in a beef barley soup and now I'm getting ready to try them in another recipe.

I find that if you go to a store that caters to the Latin trade in town you can find all kinds of meats that aren't readily available in the larger big box type markets.

 

[Andy M.]

...Finding veal shanks is also next to impossible around here. I'm going to have to prod some producers next time the Farmer's Market is open...in the Spring.

I have followed Julia Child's advice. If you don't see what you want, ask the meat manager for it. They could have it in the back or be willing to order some for you.

Most are eager to please and it costs them nothing extra to order a specific item as they just pass the cost along to you.

 

[taxlady]

I have followed Julia Child's advice. If you don't see what you want, ask the meat manager for it. They could have it in the back or be willing to order some for you.

Most are eager to please and it costs them nothing extra to order a specific item as they just pass the cost along to you.

I'm always cautious about special ordering. I would hate to gag on the price when they are going out of their way to order it for me.

But, I always think it's a good idea to talk to the butchers. One year I was looking for capon for my Solstice dinner party. I asked the butcher and she pointed at some "big chickens" that were already out. She told me that they don't write that they are capons because people get weirded out. Now I know why some people think that big chickens are juicier and more tender than smaller ones. I was very pleased, because they cost the same as chicken with no premium for being a capon.

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

My local grocery store has beef shanks (cross-cut, not whole like the lamb shanks that are also available). Usually they cost more than chuck, so I generally go with chuck for braised dishes.

I think foodies have driven demand and prices for "Odds and Ends" into middle-territory of butcher counter prices. While short ribs don't have prices on par with rib-eye, they are certainly more expensive than ground meat in my neck of the woods. I see food prices as follows...

1. Premium Cuts: Beef Tenderloin, Rib-Eye, Veal
2. New Demand: Chicken Wings, Short Ribs, Baby-Back Ribs, Veal Bones, Sweetbreads
3. Economy: Ground Meat, Chicken Breasts
4. Cheap: Liver/Stomach, Whole Birds, Whole Pork Cuts

The price of veal bones has really gone up in my area - something I'm bummed about as I use to buy 30+ pounds at a whack and load our freezer with a few quarts of Glace De Viande for sauces. I used to get them for less than a dollar a pound, and now it's 2-4X that depending on market prices.

We've been eating more pork lately, with pork bones being almost free for stock. Turkey has also been on our menu quite a bit, along with whole Haddock (I'm on the NE coast). We have beef maybe once a month.

 

[4meandthem]

I find that if you go to a store that caters to the Latin trade in town you can find all kinds of meats that aren't readily available in the larger big box type markets.

I totally agree with this!

I have bought boneless beef shanks for about 2.50lb
Great place for offal and they also have ribs cut every way you can think of.I get tongue there too.Yummo!

I can also get tenderloin for 3.99-4.99lb there.

 

[taxlady]

I guess it's time to start talking to the butchers at the ethnic stores.

 

[Robo410]

I use beef shanks and shin bones for soups stews and sauces. Wonderful!

 

[ChefJune]

Is it just where I am or are what used to be considered "cheap" cuts now really expensive? Shanks, ox tail, short ribs, even soup bone (if you can find them) seem to cost close to the same as regular cuts.

It's not your imagination, Dave.

When chefs started using the so-called lesser cuts of meat on their restaurant menus, they became popular, and folks started requesting them at the market. The retailers saw the opportunity to gouge us a little further, and have been raising the prices ever since.

BTW, Osso Buco is technically veal shanks.

 

[Claire]

Flank steaks. Used to be the cheapest thing that wasn't ground.

I think that what used to be sold as shanks is now cut smaller and sold as soup bones. I live in a small town, and when something like this comes up, I talk to the butcher. He might be able to get a shank whole rather than in the 3/4 or so inch cut for soup or marrow bones.

I'd think that a slow braise in red wine with vegetables would be good.

 

[powerplantop]

I find that if you go to a store that caters to the Latin trade in town you can find all kinds of meats that aren't readily available in the larger big box type markets.

That is where I also find them.