Mark Hix recipe: Pork Osso bucco

Serves 4

Serve Pork Osso bucco with creamed polenta or mashed potato (Jason Lowe)

This is an unusual cut for pork but there's no reason a good butcher shouldn't do it for you.

4 x 350g centre-cut pieces of shin of pork, or 8 smaller pieces
Flour for dusting
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil for frying

For the sauce

50g butter
1 onion, peeled, halved and finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 medium carrot, trimmed, peeled and cut into ½cm dice
200g celeriac, peeled and cut into ½cm dice
A good pinch of saffron
A few sprigs of thyme, leaves removed
1tbsp flour
60g tomato purée
100ml white wine
1½ltrs beef stock

Lightly flour and season the pieces of pork. Heat the vegetable oil in a heavy frying pan and fry the pieces of pork until nicely coloured on both sides, then remove from the pan and put to one side.

In a large, heavy-based pan gently cook the onion, garlic, carrot and celeriac in the butter until soft. Add the saffron, thyme and tomato purée and cook for a minute or so, then stir in the flour. Gradually whisk in the wine and the stock and bring to the boil.

Add the pieces of pork and cook slowly on top of the stove with a lid on, or in a medium-heat oven, for about 1-1½ hours, or until the meat is tender. The sauce should be quite thick by now; if not, remove the pieces of pork and simmer the sauce until it thickens, then return the pork.