This is a killer dinner! Rehydrating dried chillies in apple juice with raisins releases their heat and infuses them with a sticky sweetness that goes insanely well with lamb.

Ingredients

• 2–3 smoked ancho chillies
• Large handful of raisins
• 285ml apple juice
• 4 lamb shanks
• Olive oil
• 3 medium red onions, finely chopped
• 8 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 2–3 fresh red chillies of your choice, halved and deseeded
• 1 heaped tsp smoked paprika
• A few fresh bay leaves
• 3–4 rosemary sprigs
• 1 x 400g tin tomatoes
• 750ml chicken stock or water
• A dash of red wine vinegar
• Sliced red chillies and sliced garlic (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to full whack. Put the dried chillies, raisins and apple juice in a bowl then set aside. Put the lamb shanks in a roasting tray then rub all over with olive oil, sea salt and black pepper. Bang them in the oven for 20 minutes and, as they’re browning, get a casserole pan that will fit the shanks quite snugly – about 24cm in diameter and 10cm deep. Put it on a medium heat and add a lug of olive oil. Devote about 10 minutes to sweating off the onions, garlic, fresh chilli, smoked paprika, bay leaves and rosemary.