Mahiche, Persian Braised Lamb Shanks, is a celebratory dish where lamb slowly simmers with warm spices, saffron, and a medley of aromatic vegetables until it’s fall-off-the-bone tender.
Mahiche, Persian Braised Lamb Shanks, is a celebratory dish where lamb slowly simmers with warm spices, saffron, and a medley of aromatic vegetables until it’s fall-off-the-bone tender. Every bite is rich, flavorful, and perfect for serving over fluffy Persian dill rice.
Mahiche, which is the Persian word for shanks, in this recipe refers to Persian Braised Lamb Shanks, a dish that embodies warmth and tradition. The shanks braise for hours with onions, garlic, turmeric, cinnamon, and saffron, creating a deep, rich gravy that infuses every bite with bold flavor. The slow cooking process ensures the lamb is irresistibly tender, and yields a fragrant sauce perfect for spooning over a bed of fluffy rice.
This braised lamb recipe is most commonly served alongside Baghali Polo, Persian Dill and Fava Bean Rice, for a truly grand meal. The lamb shanks sit proudly in their dish next to the rice, bathed in the luscious sauce. The combination, called Baghali Polo ba Mahiche, is a dish you’ll find on the menu at Persian restaurants alongside other beloved classics like Ghormeh Sabzi, Fesenjan (Persian Pomegranate and Walnut Chicken Stew), and Joojeh Kabob (Persian Saffron and Yogurt Chicken Kabobs).
Given its grandeur, Baghali Polo ba Mahiche is often reserved for special occasions and family gatherings rather than a simple Sunday lunch at home. It’s a dish that brings people together, filling the home with irresistible aromas as it cooks gently on the stove.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for Persian Braised Lamb
This braised lamb dish comes together with a handful of simple yet essential ingredients, each playing a role in building its rich, aromatic depth. Here’s everything you need to make this traditional Persian meal:
- Saffron imparts its distinctive floral and musky flavor to this braised lamb. To get the most flavor, we bloom it in water before adding it to the pot.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Lamb typically has plenty of fat, but I like to use a little olive oil to brown the lamb and sauté the vegetables before braising them.
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper season the lamb before searing it.
- Lamb leg shanks: Bone-in lamb shanks cook to fall-off-the-bone tenderness. Use good quality, pasture-raised lamb from a local butcher or supermarket. New Zealand lamb is excellent if you can get your hands on it.
- Onions form the flavor base of the dish, adding sweetness to the sauce as they soften.
- Garlic goes from pungent to sweet and jammy with slow cooking in the sauce for the lamb.
- Carrots, celery, and red bell pepper: This trio of vegetables adds a subtle sweetness and body to the sauce for the lamb shanks, imparting extra flavor to the dish.
- Spices: Turmeric brings an earthy warmth, while cinnamon adds a hint of sweetness that pairs beautifully with the lamb. Bay leaves add a subtle herbal note. Together, they create the signature spice profile of mahiche.
- Tomato paste: Just a touch of tomato adds color, and a bit of acidity to provide further complexity to the flavor of the sauce.
- Vegetable broth: A flavorful cooking liquid helps create a rich, well-seasoned sauce. You can buy it from the store or make homemade vegetable broth. You can also use chicken stock or beef broth if that’s what you have on hand.
How to Make Persian Braised Lamb Shanks
Braising lamb shanks for a long time yields super tender results. The key is browning them and the vegetables and spices for the sauce first. Here’s the full recipe, step by step.
- Bloom the saffron: Add 1/8 teaspoon ground saffron to 1 tablespoon water and set aside to bloom.
- Brown the lamb shanks: Place a Dutch oven or a large pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season 4 bone-in lamb shanks with salt and pepper and brown them on all sides, about 8-10 minutes. Once browned, remove the shanks from the pan and set them aside.
- Cook the vegetables: Add 3 finely sliced onions to the pot and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Add 4 sliced garlic cloves, 2 diced carrots, 1 diced red bell pepper, and 2 diced celery stalks and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Add the spices: Stir in 2 teaspoons ground turmeric and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, followed by 1 tablespoon tomato paste. Add 2 bay leaves.
- Braise the lamb shanks: Pour in 3 cups vegetable broth. Stir in the bloomed saffron and return the shanks to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the lamb is fall-off-the-bone tender, about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Taste and season the dish with salt and pepper before serving.
- Finish and serve. Lift the shanks gently, using two forks, and place them into a serving dish. Ladle the sauce over and around the shanks and serve.
What to Serve With Persian Braised Lamb Shanks (Mahiche)
This style of Braised Lamb Shanks are typically served with Persian Dill and Fava Bean Rice (Baghali Polo) and together the dish is called Baghali Polo ba Mahiche.
Yogurt is commonly served alongside our main dishes too, and a favorite of ours is Maast o’Khiar, which is pretty much the same as the Greek yogurt and cucumber dip Tzatziki.
As a complement to Persian meals, pickles are also provided to our guests. We have a range of different pickles or Torshi as we call them, including mixed vegetable pickle (Torshi Makhloot) and pickled garlic (Sir Torshi).
Traditionally, we eat the garlic pickle with this dish. Whole garlic bulbs are fermented in salt and vinegar for a minimum of 1 year. In Iran, some jars of garlic have been left to pickle for decades. The resulting pickled garlic has lost its pungency and spiciness and is left with a sweet and sour flavor. The cloves are sometimes soft enough to spread on toast like butter. If you have a local Middle Eastern grocery store that sells Persian pickles, it is well worth supplementing your pantry with them.
How to Store
You can store leftover Mahiche for up to 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Allow it to cool before placing it in the fridge.
Alternatively, you can freeze leftovers. Allow the lamb to cool completely, then transfer to freezer bags or containers, either with or without the shank bones. It will last for up to 3 months in the freezer. Defrost it in the refrigerator a day ahead of time. You can reheat it in the microwave or gently reheat it in a saucepan with a lid on the stove.
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Persian Braised Lamb Shanks (Mahiche)
Ingredients
- 1/8 teaspoon saffron, ground
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 bone-in lamb shanks
- 3 onions, finely sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 cups vegetable broth
Instructions
- Bloom the saffron. Add the saffron to the water and set aside to bloom.
- Brown the lamb shanks. Place a Dutch oven or a large pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper and brown them on all sides, about 8-10 minutes. Once browned, remove the shanks from the pan and set them aside.
- Cook the vegetables. Add the sliced onions to the pot and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, carrots, red pepper and celery and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Add the spices. Stir in the turmeric and cinnamon, followed by the tomato paste. Add the bay leaves.
- Braise the lamb shanks. Pour in the vegetable broth. Stir in the bloomed saffron and return the shanks to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the lamb is fall-off-the-bone tender, about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Taste and season the dish with salt and pepper before serving.
- Finish and serve. Lift the shanks gently, using two forks, and place them into a serving dish. Ladle the sauce over and around the shanks and serve.
Notes
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients including the saffron and olive oil used in this recipe.
- How to Store: You can store leftover Mahiche for up to 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Allow it to cool before placing it in the fridge. Alternatively, you can freeze leftovers. Allow the lamb to cool completely, then transfer to freezer bags or containers, either with or without the shank bones. It will last for up to 3 months in the freezer. Defrost it in the refrigerator a day ahead of time. You can reheat it in the microwave or gently reheat in a saucepan with a lid on the stove.
Nutrition
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Thank you so very much for the wonder recipe. I found this and my wife cooked it while I was in town doing errands. When I came home, a very special Passover Dinner awaited. Tomorrow we will enjoy the gravy, sauce and left over lamb with wild rice and veggies. It was just so tasty. We have more lamb in the freezer and will use this recipe to make more throughout the summer. Awesome recipe.
Yay! Thank you so much!
Hello, could I ask what would you serve this with? Thank you
Hi, Andrea! You can find some great serving suggestions if you scroll to the “What to Serve With Persian Braised Lamb Shanks (Mahiche)” section of the post. Enjoy!
My husband can’t have tomato paste (or anything with tomato or vinegar) can you recommend an alternative to the tomato paste or just skip it altogether?
Hi, Shannon. It’s only a small amount, so omitting it might work. Although we’ve never tested these, there are a few other alternatives you could try if you’re feeling adventurous: roasted red pepper puree (jarred roasted red bell peppers can be blended into a smooth purée to mimic the texture and add a subtle sweetness to the dish) or harissa paste (a North African chili pepper paste made with roasted red peppers, garlic, coriander, and caraway seeds that can adds heat and a smoky kick… use it sparingly, though, as it is spicier than tomato paste). As always, when using a substitution, start with a smaller amount and taste/adjust as needed since each substitute brings its own unique flavor profile.
Good morning, Saffron and Turmeric are they different spices. Please reply I want to do your lamb shank recipe
Hi, Anne — Yes, they are different spices. Saffron is threads from a flower and they are red. It has a floral flavor. Turmeric is yellow and can be slightly bitter.