Shank — Tagine · 70

Cook Shank as Stews to 88° at the centre. Plate as Tagine. Angle 2: check thickness before the clock. Lower leg packed with collagen. Hours of moist heat turn it into the sticky, spoonable meat of osso-style braises. Cheap per kilo until restaurants rediscovered it; still one of the best value cuts on the animal.

French-trimmed shanks with a clean bone handle look better and brown more evenly. Liquid should come halfway up the shanks. Turn once so both sides glaze. Buy for size match — two shanks of equal weight cook evenly in one pot. Cook Shank as Tagine to 88° at the centre. Thick grain needs more time.

Cook Shank as Tagine to 88° at the centre. Thick grain needs more time. A cut’s grain comes from how much the muscle worked. Shank needs heat through to 88° before “Tagine” makes sense. 88 is a stage of that heat, not a luxury score. The same cut becomes a stew, a grill, or a braise, so a steak minute does not cover a pot. Thick connective tissue wants time, not a hard sear alone. This is not medical advice.