Cooking beef shanks in the instant pot is easy and one of my favorite ways to make shanks. Beef shanks are tender, healthy, and delicious when served over mashed potatoes and gravy. Learn how to make beef shanks in the instant pot for an easy family dinner.
What are Beef Shanks?
Beef shanks are flavorful, lean, and very tender when cooked properly. The shank is located just above the knee of the cow so it is a muscle used frequently. The shanks have a bone in the center of the meat that is filled with healthy marrow. When the shanks are cooked tenderly the meat will fall away from the marrow bone.
What are beef shanks used for?
Beef shanks are very lean and good for slow cooker and soup recipes. The shank marrow bones can be used to make healthy bone broth. When you source your beef from a local farm be sure to talk to the butcher about keeping the shanks. Oftentimes, they will be grounded up for lean ground beef or packaged as soup bones. I prefer to keep them whole to incorporate into more recipes. Shank recipes are most commonly known as Osso Buco.
How to cook beef shanks in the Instant Pot
Cooking beef shanks in the Instant Pot is so easy and takes less than an hour with very little hands on work. This can be done entirely in the Instant Pot. Start by seasoning the shanks on both sides and then with the instant pot on the sauté feature, brown the shanks on both sides.
Next, set the shanks aside on a glass plate and add in some onions and garlic. After the onions and garlic have cooked a bit add in some broth and red wine. Use the broth and red wine to scrap any excess droppings off the bottom of the instant pot before adding the shanks back in.
How Long to cook beef shanks in the instant pot?
Lock the lid and turn the pressure valve to the sealing position. Cook on high pressure for forty minutes. Let the pressure naturally release for ten minutes.
When the shanks are done pressure cooking. place them on a plate and pull the tender meat away from the bone before serving.
What to serve with Beef Shanks made in the Instant Pot?
Beef shanks are best when served over mashed potatoes and gravy that was yielded from the drippings in the instant pot. Start making your mashed potatoes when the instant pot reads twenty minutes left.
Just strain the drippings and add them back into a skillet on medium heat. Add in a bit of flour and whisk as the gravy thickens up.
Serve the shank meat overtop the potatoes covered in the gravy.
