Oxtail & beef shin lasagne

For the ragù, preheat the oven to 160ºC, gas mark 4. Heat a medium, heavy-based, casserole over a high heat. Once hot, add 2 tbsp oil and sear the beef shin, in batches, until lightly coloured. Remove with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl. Sear the oxtail on all sides, until lightly coloured, then add to the bowl with the shin. Deglaze the casserole with the wine, scraping the bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, then add to the bowl.

Return the casserole to a medium heat and add the remaining 2 tbsp oil. Once hot, add the onion, carrots and celery and fry, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes, until reduced in volume. Stir in the garlic, rosemary and bay leaves, then add the tomatoes and milk. Bring to a simmer, add the meat and wine, then cover and cook in the oven for 4 hours, stirring halfway (add a splash of water if it seems dry), until the meat is tender and flakes apart – the beef should fall easily from the bone.

Remove the bones, any large pieces of fat, the rosemary stalks and bay leaves, breaking up the meat, allow to cool slightly, then season to taste – I don’t add any seasoning until this point, to be sure the flavour is precisely right. Set aside and allow to cool and thicken.

For the cheese sauce, put the butter into a medium saucepan and melt over a medium heat. Stir in the flour until a thick paste forms, then add the milk, a splash at a time, beating well with a wooden spoon after each addition. The mixture will appear to thicken as you add the milk, but keep beating and adding the milk. Once the sauce starts to slacken, switch to a whisk and stir – scrape the base of the pan regularly to avoid anything sticking and burning. Once all the milk has been added, let the sauce simmer, stirring regularly, for 1 minute or so, then remove from the heat and stir in the cheese and nutmeg. Season to taste.

To assemble, butter a 23x33cm roasting dish, then line with 4 lasagne sheets. Spoon about a quarter of the ragù on top and spread it over the lasagne sheets as evenly as possible with the back of a spoon. Ladle on about a fifth of the cheese sauce, and gently spread over the ragù. Repeat the layering 3 more times, then finish with a generous layer of lasagne and top with the remaining cheese sauce. Sprinkle with some extra grated cheese.

Once assembled, the lasagne can be kept in the fridge for up to 48 hours. To bake immediately, preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6 and bake for 40-45 minutes (longer if cooking from chilled, and covered with foil if needed), until the top is a deep, golden colour. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve.