Mountain Cassoulet
April 13, 2023
Casserole
,French
,Main
What started out as a lowly peasant’s food of dried beans, preserved meats, and sausages back in the medieval ages in Languedoc, France has become a cultural heritage putting three modern French towns at odds over its true inventor and the “proper” way to cook it.
Just like peasant foods in any other country, this dish was designed to make do with whatever people could find notably, dried beans, and the inexpensive preserved pork and preserved duck, which for our purposes may be replaced with chicken. Just don’t let the French find out.
The beans are slow cooked ‘till they are almost dissolved and melt soon as they hit your tongue, and the meat is tender and creamy with the crust being the only discernible texture in the pot. Once served, crack the crust open to see the beans swimming in a rich, gelatinous broth with bits of tender chicken leg, smoked pork shank, and sausages.
As you eat the aromatic vegetables leave a faint background taste while the overall rich, creamy, meaty, and smokey flavors leave a lingering impression. This dish is a complete meal on its own, and is not served with a side, because it doesn’t need it, but a simple salad toss may be a refreshing break from all the overwhelming strong flavors that hit your mouth at once.
bon appetit
Mountain Cassoulet
Ingredients
- 1 lb. garlic-blue cheese sausages or your favorite sausage
- 1 smoked pork shank cubed
- 2 strips bacon cut into 1-inch pieces
- 4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 2 small carrots chopped (unpeeled)
- 1 stalk celery chopped
- 1 tbsp Herbes de Provence
- 1 29- ounce can of cannellini beans drained
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 cups bread crumbs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF
- In a Dutch oven at medium-high, cook the bacon until just starting to crisp, and then remove the pieces.
- Add the sausages and brown them. Remove from pan to a plate and set aside.
- Place the chicken thighs skin down in the bottom of the pan, cooking for 8 minutes. Turn the chicken thighs over and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from pan to a plate and set aside.
- Reserve 2 tablespoons of the pan fat (leave it in the pan) and discard the remaining fat.
- Add the onions and sauté until translucent. Add the carrots, celery, and garlic, and cook until softened.
- Mix together the vegetables and cannellini beans in a casserole dish. spread this out evenly across the bottom.
- Place all the meats on top of the beans and vegetables. Pour chicken stock on top of everything.
- Melt the butter and in a small bowl combine with the bread crumbs. Sprinkle it evenly over the stew.
- Bake for 1 and a half hours, periodically pressing the bread crumbs into the stew which will help thicken it.
- Place the stew underneath the broiler to slightly brown the top crumbs and remove it from the oven.
- Allow to sit for a few minutes, then serve and enjoy!
- Bon appétit
