Slow-cooked lamb shanks Recipe:

Plain (all-purpose) flour for coating
2  tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 cup (8 fluid ounces) of red wine
2-1/2 cups (1 pint) lamb or beef stock
400 grams (14 ounces) can of tomatoes
1 Bay leaf1 tablespn chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Sea salt and cracked black pepper.

How to cook it: Grind plenty of salt and pepper into the flour and roll the lamb shanks in it.Heat the oil in a heavy casserole dish on the hob and add the shanks, try and keep turning them until they brown on all sides. Take them out and add the onions and garlic, fry till soft then add the wine and scrape up all the bits off the bottom of the dish for extra flavour!Add the tomatoes, stock, rosemary and the bay leaf and bring to the boil. Return the shanks, cover and place in an oven at 160 degrees. The kitchen will soon start smelling fantastic and you will have a very cheap and very tasty weekend tea.

You can pour the sauce into a pan and reduce it to thicken. Serve with either mash, roast potatoes, cous cous, rice or plain chips and fresh veg.

Beef madras Recipe:

2lb shin beef
2 large onions chopped
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3cm piece of ginger
Tin of chopped tomatoes
Tin of coconut milk
Cup of beef stock
1 tablespoon of tomato puree
3 or 4 green chillis
1 tablespoon of ground cumin
1 tablespoon of ground turmeric
1 tablespoon of ground coriander
1 teaspoon of Garam Masala
Large bunch of fresh coriander
Salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon of sugar

How to cook it: Toss the shin beef in some seasoned flour and fry over a high heat in oil until well browned. Take out and place on one side. Put the chopped onion into a pan with the sugar, salt and pepper, chopped chilli, grated ginger and garlic into the pan and cook gently for 10 minutes till softened. Add the cumin, coriander and turmeric and allow to cook for 5 mins then add the tomato puree and fry for another couple of minutes. Return the beef to the pan with the stock, tinned tomatoes and coconut milk. Put in a casserole dish and cook for a couple of hours on 160 degrees. Five minutes before the end of cooking add the Garam Masala and 3/4 of the chopped coriander. Serve with boiled rice and the rest of the coriander sprinkled on top.2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsleySea salt and cracked black pepper.