Osso Bucco Advice

A friend who recently came for dinner asked me about the osso bucco that I prepared. It seems that he's going to have a few relatives in town, and he wanted to prepare osso bucco too.

There were three pieces of advice I gave him. Since he's working from a Silver Palate cookbook, the temperature they recommend to cook the osso bucco is 350 degrees for 1-1/2 hours. I told him to cook it at 325 degrees for an hour, then turn it down to 275 and let it braise for another full hour.

Here's my second piece of advice. Just add your spices (these vary from one recipe to the next), and don't worry about using a bouquet garni. It's a hassle that, in my opinion doesn't add anything to the final dish.

My third and final piece of advice? Be sure to include the lemon zest. Most osso bucco recipes call for it, but it's one of those ingredients that cooks tend to disregard if they don't have it readily on hand or if they're in a hurry. The lemon zest really adds a nice, subtle flavor.