Lamb Shanks Braised with Cardamom and Onion

• 4 medium lamb shanks, about 3 1/2 pounds in all
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups plain yogurt, preferably the acidophilus yogurt sold in health-food stores, or Greek yogurt
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• One 3-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 3 tablespoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup olive or canola oil
• 10 cardamom pods
• 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• Two 3-inch cinnamon sticks
• 1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1 medium onion, cut into fine half rings

1. Pat the shanks dry.
2. Sprinkle them all over with 1/2 teaspoon salt and lots of freshly ground pepper.
3. Preheat oven to 325F.
4. Put 1/2 cup of the yogurt, the garlic, and ginger into a blender and blend until smooth.
5. Now add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and the remaining 1 cup yogurt.
6. Blend to mix.
7. Pour the oil into a very wide ovenproof saute pan or wide casserole dish, large enough to hold the shanks easily in one layer, and set over medium-high heat.
8. When hot, put in the cardamom, peppercorns, cinnamon, cloves, and shanks.
9. Brown the shanks on one side.
10. Turn them over, dropping the onion slices in the spaces between them.
11. Brown the second side as well as the onions, moving the onions around in the pan as you need to.
12. When the second side has browned, add the paste from the blender and 1 cup water.
13. Bring to a boil.
14. Cover and place the pan in the oven.
15. Bake for 3 hours, turning the shanks over every 30 minutes.

lamb shanks, salt, freshly ground black pepper, plain yogurt, garlic, ginger, ground coriander, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, olive, pods, whole black peppercorns, cinnamon, whole cloves, onion

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/lamb-shanks-braised-with-cardamom-and-onion-373803 (may not work)