Shanks are due.

Guest recipe, because I'm on a plane, somewhere else in the world!

First time for four years! Follow my travels on Instagram if you can bear it; I can’t promise it won’t make you want to block me.

But I tell you what, if I was at home, I would be making these rogan josh lamb shanks, because, just look at them.

The recipe from Vineet Bhatia is below, with thanks to Josh Emett of New Zealand’s Onslow restaurant in Auckland, and The Oyster Inn on Waiheke Island.

Josh gave me a copy of his very clever cook book, The Recipe, while a bunch of us were out floating around Sydney Harbour on a magical late summer evening on Sea Raes.

I’ve been on several luxury charter boats on Sydney Harbour (yes, living the life), and this is the most intuitively designed. Everywhere you look, there is light, and air, and glimpses of water and sky and land. We all became mesmerised, almost sleepy, by the changing light on the water, the falling of dusk, the sparkling lights, those ridiculously look-at-me bridges; all the while sipping Laurent Perrier and eating snacks devised by Josh and Byron Bay’s Raes of Watego chef, Jason Saxby.

Back to the book - it’s the sort of strong idea I am always drawn to, beautifully followed-through with design, and I wasn’t at all surprised to see it was from New Zealand-based global publishers Blackwell & Ruth, with whom I worked on Truth Love & Clean Cutlery a few years ago.

For it, Josh simply made a list of all the great recipes in the world and which chef or cook he would most like to cook them – and ended up with 300 recipes and contributions from 150 of the world’s finest. They all look good, from David Chang’s ramen to Daniel Boulud’s veal goulash, to Gordon Ramsay and Australia’s Annie Smithers and Luke Nguyen. It reminds me a little of David Herbert’s gorgeous little tried-and-true The Perfect Cookbook in that you could tackle any one of them for a great result. Desserts play a strong game - lookee here.

I first met Josh 25 years ago (!), when he was a young head chef at Gordon Ramsay at The Savoy in London and we came in to review. Impressive. Obviously he still is, and with the same rigour for testing and perfecting and getting things right.

Well, my copy of the book fell open on the recipe for lamb shanks from Vineet Bhatia, a great Indian chef and restaurateur in London, and I thought, what a nice thing to pass on via my blog, and get me out of a hole because I am travelling but still want to offer you something chewy.

The recipe was on Josh’s list, he says, because he became such a huge fan of Indian cuisine over his ten years in the UK, and particularly loved the balance of flavours Vineet brought to his dishes at Zaika and Cinnamon Club. If you try it, let me know how you go. In the meantime, block me on Instagram. (Not really, please don’t block me for real, that would be terrible).

Lamb Shank Rogan Josh

From Vineet Bhatia, via The Recipe, by Josh Emett.

●      4 lamb shanks, fat removed

●      250 g lamb shoulder meat, cut into 3.5 cm cubes

●      4 tbsp (60ml) vegetable oil

●      1 tsp fennel seeds

●      1 tsp cumin seeds

●      1 blade of mace

●      2 cloves

●      4 green cardamom pods

●      2 black cardamom pods

●      2 ½ cm stick cinnamon

●      1 bay leaf

●      3 onions, sliced

●      1 tbsp ginger paste

●      1 tbsp garlic paste

●      1 tsp turmeric powder

●      1 tsp red chilli powder

●      1 tsp cumin powder

●      1 tsp coriander powder

●      salt

●      2 tbsp tomato paste

●      1 tbsp (15ml) lemon juice

●      ½ tsp garam masala

●      1 tsp granulated sugar

To serve: chopped fresh coriander and thin strips of fresh ginger

Wash and drain the lamb shanks and diced meat. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the whole spices and bay leaf, and cook briefly until they start to crackle. Add the sliced onion and cook, stirring occasionally until browned.

Add the ginger and garlic pastes, and cook for a minute longer. Stir in the ground spices, and some salt, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add enough water to cover the meat, bring to a simmer and cook gently for about 40 minutes, until the meat is three-quarters done.

Stir in the tomato paste and simmer until the meat is fully cooked and the liquid has thickened, about another 40 minutes. Add the lemon juice, garam masala, and sugar. Check the seasoning and serve, garnish with coriander and ginger.

Thanks for dropping by! Thanks also to NZ-based photographer Kieran E. Scott for the very wow images from the book, and to Josh and Helen, and Ashley and Jason and Karla for all the good times. If you’re after the book, I’m told it has sold out and a reprint is on the cards - but check with your local bookstore for a copy. Special thanks to Terry for promising to make this for me the first night we’re back home.

I would also like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. I fully support the Uluru Statement from the Heart, and for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to be enshrined in Australia’s Constitution. It’s only fair, folks.