Osso Buco

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a food processor, combine the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic, and pulse to chop. Pull the leaves off the parsley stems and chop by hand; you should have about 2 tablespoons parsley. Set the leaves aside for the gremolata, but save the stems.

Melt the butter in a Dutch oven or wide, shallow (4 to 5 inches high) pot over medium heat. Add the chopped vegetables, thyme, bay leaves, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cook, sitting occasionally, until the vegetables are softened but not browned, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high flame until smoking. Put the flour in a large paper or plastic bag, add the veal, and shake the bag to coat the veal with the flour. Remove the veal from the bag and shake off the excess flour. Put the veal on a plate or cutting board and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the pepper. When the oil is hot, put the veal in the pan and cook until well browned on one side, 3 to 4 minutes. Then turn and brown on the other side. Move the browned veal to the pot with the vegetables. Discard the fat from the frying pan. Add the wine to the pan and cook, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to pick up any browned bits, for 1 minute. Pour that into the pot with the veal and vegetables, then add the stock and reserved parsley stems. Bring to a boil, cover, and put the pot in the oven. Braise until the veal is very tender and falling off the bone, 1 3/4 to 2 hours.

While the meat cooks, make the gremolata: stir together the reserved 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, the minced garlic, and the lemon zest. Set aside.

When the meat is tender, remove it to a deep serving platter. Put the pot over medium-high heat and reduce until the liquid is just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes. The sauce shouldn’t be thick, but rather thickened juices with lots of vegetables. Remove the parsley stems, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves. Pour the sauce over the veal and sprinkle with the gremolata. Serve hot.

Wine pairing: Aged Barolo or Aglianico