• The day before cooking, mix the two quarts of water with the salt until dissolved, then add the lamb shanks and refrigerate for 12-24 hours.
• Preheat and oven to 300F. Bruise the herbs and orange peel by crushing them lightly with the back of a knife to release their aroma.

Cooking the lamb shanks

• Remove the shanks from their brine. Discard the brine. Mix the wine, shanks, and all ingredients except the butter into a casserole or dutch oven. If you want, you can sear the shanks until browned on all sides, but it's not necessary for this recipe if you use good stock.
• Bake, covered with parchment and a lid, until the lamb shanks are just tender, and barely give when pierced, about 2-2.5 hours or until the meat is nearly falling off the bone. Cool the lamb shanks in their liquid, then strain the liquid and reserve. Be careful not to over cook the shanks--they should not fall apart.
• To serve the shanks, in a large pan, (10 inches should be ok) warm the lamb shanks and their braising juice and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low and reduce the liquid slowly until it starts to become syrupy. Turn the heat to low, then whisk in the butter to thicken it, being careful not to break the sauce.
• Baste the shanks as much as you can to glaze them with the juice while it reduces, which will coat them with a glossy sauce. If the sauce starts to reduce too quickly, add a little water to adjust the thickness and prevent it from breaking and getting oily.
• To finish, remove the pan from the heat as the sauce thickens, basting constantly with the sauce. When the shanks look glazed and shiny, double check the seasoning of the sauce, adjust as needed, then serve immediately.