Persian Lamb braised in merlot (with rose and orange).

Thurs. March 1
In this case, Persian Lamb is edible, not astrakhan. A lovely simmered stoo with lots of wacky flavors, from the March 2007 Gourmet. The original recipe calls for blanching the orange peel, dissolving the saffron, and flouring the lamb, none of which is necessary. (Saffron never really does dissolve, and after two hours of braising, are you really going to be able to find intact saffron threads? Flouring is to protect the surface of delicate protein, like fish, but for lamb? The residual flour will help thicken the sauce, but so does two hours cooking.) Use a big dutch oven. Preheat the non-dutch (Belgian? Well, just plain ol' big heavy cookpot - ours is Chinese) to 325º.
So for two people:
2 lamb shanks (the foreshank, which is less meaty and cheaper, is perfect for this type of long simmer)
DRY STUFF:
2 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, sliced
zest of 1 orange (cleverly reserved from the previous night's fish with blood oranges), cut into thin strips
(1 tsp lime zest)
1 piece of cinnamon stick
WET STUFF
3 cups or so merlot
2 TBSP rose water
1/2 tsp saffron (crushed between your fingers, which will look and smell nice)
2 tsp honey
water, as and if necessary.

Brown the lamb in just a film of oil in the dutch oven. (If you do flour it, use a sieve to get an even dusting, and add extra oil). Remove to a plate.
Fry up the dry stuff, until the onion is just brown.
Pour in the wet stuff. Put back in the meat stuff.
Cover and put the dutch oven in the oven oven.
Braise for 2 hours.
Check and see if it needs more liquid. Flip the meat.
Braise for another hour if necessary. Meat should be near falling off the bone.
Serve with rice.
The flavors are dark and deep. We made this the night before, braising for 2 hours. Then re-hotted it in the ovens (both dutch and other) for about an hour more the next night. Delicious.