Beef Shank Pot Roast, Gravy, Bone Broth (and marrow -- shhhhhh)

Cooking up some pot roast for dinner.  I'm using beef shank which gives me the added advantage of a few bones (marrow bones).  This is a simple, make-ahead dinner -- with plenty of leftovers!  First, sear each shank (about $5 each).  I'm using 3 because we have a few nights this week when we need a quick meal and the leftovers will come in handy.  Searing locks in the juice and helps keep the broth very clear -- which is nicer for the vegetables.  Not as much in the way of "floaties" sticking to them.  To this, I added about 5 roasted knuckle and marrow bones.  These bones not only flavor the broth but make the broth something special for other meals including soups and gravies.  (We also liberally feed out the broth to our high energy border-collie-without-an-off-switch in order to keep her bones strong).


After cooking for a day or two, at noon on the day you plan to serve this, remove the bones and add potato, onion, carrots and some herbs.  Skim the fat and make some gravy with it.

From the bones, remove any softened cartilage and add it to a collection of good-eats-for-puppy.  Also add a good dose of broth to her evening meal.

After dinner, remove meat and vegetables from the broth.  Add this to the remaining gravy for a gravy and toast fast-food meal. 

Add the bones back into the remaining broth.  Add a bit of organic cider vinegar in order to extract maximum minerals from the bones.  Minerals are the main reason that I add bone broths to our diet and I often wonder how much additional calcium my family needs after eating these broths.  Cook for another night (I simmer on VERY low on the stove-top). After refrigerating, a hard, beautiful, mineral-rich gelatin will await you.  Use this for sausage tortellini soup or add some to boiled water and feed-out to those suffering from a cold.

Now for the marrow.  I love the foods of France.  In France, they eat the marrow -- and Julia Child has told me to do the same.  Though I am a bit squimish about it, I am going to scoop the marrow from the bones, season it, and serve it to my family.  I'll probably make my best, homemade baguette and spread a think layer onto it.  I know they will enjoy it -- they all have a pretty adventurous palette and eat very little in the way of processed foods (pasta excluded).  Why would I do this?  Well, just to try it, but also because I believe that it is important to eat real foods.  Although this is fatty, it is also rich in nutrients.  It is also my firm belief that we should be honoring each animal by not wasting any of it where possible.  I'll let you know how it goes...


Now, for the remaining bones.  The broth is in the refrigerator and there is no need to throw out the bones.  We do not give these to the dog after they have been cooked as they may splinter and will not be safe for her.  They go in the compost pile!  I want these minerals to be returned to my soil in order to build up the mineral profile of my vegetables.

Note: It is my strong opinion that only grass-fed, non-medicated animals for bones should be used for these broths.  Animals from CAFOs and animals given medications and hormones, in my opinion would not be safe for me to feed my family -- or my puppy!