French Cassoulet 2021

Ingredients

1 Whole duck (thigh for confit and bone for stock)
1 Lb of Pork spare ribs
2-3 lbs of pork hock
1 lb of chorizo
2 Lbs of Cannellini Beans
5 small tomatoes
1 Carrot
1 Onion
2 clove garlic
5 cloves
2 TBS of tomato paste
Tyme
4 TBS of apple cider vinegar
duck fat
High quality salt
Black Pepper

Bake at 400F for 30-40 mins

Roasted duck bone and aromatic vegetables

Ready to toss into a big pod

Making Duck stock from Bone

Rendering duck fat from skin

Cook meats with Duck fat at 450F for 15 mins

Cook beans and vegetables and hock with Duck stock

Meats are well cooked in the oven

Place meat on the bottom

Meats are loaded in casserole

Add beans and stock

Add duck broth to the casserole

Cook at 400F about 2 hours??

Add duck confit on the top

15 mins and skin gets crisp

Cassoulet is a French traditional food that can be eaten at any time of the year, but it’s especially good during Xmas! It consists of white beans cooked with sausage and duck or pork. This dish may take all day to prepare, so I recommend starting well in advance. If you’re feeling adventurous, give cassoulet a try – it’s definitely worth the effort!

Modification and general rules:

- Cassoulet typically contains white beans, sausage, duck or pork, and a variety of herbs and spices.

- The dish can be made with either fresh or dried white beans.

- Sausage can be either traditional French saucisson sec (dried sausage), or any other type of smoked sausage.

- Duck can be replaced with pork if desired.

- Herbs and spices may include thyme, bay leaves, garlic cloves, black pepper, and salt.

Instructions:

- Soak the dried beans overnight. After soaking, discard any bad beans and drain off water. Rinse well with fresh water before cooking in clean pot of at least two quarts for about one hour or until tender but not mushy.

- While your beans are simmering away, get started on your meat! If you're using traditional French saucisson sec (dried sausage), slice it into thin rounds; if you're using other smoked sausages, remove the casing from links by cutting lengthwise downside to open up tube then cut each piece into half-moons approximately ½ inch thick. Add slices/pieces directly to cassoulet along with duck pieces/lardons, chopped onion. Cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes or until sausage is lightly browned.

- Add the cooked beans to the skillet along with their broth, fresh thyme sprigs (or dried if you don't have fresh on hand), bay leaves, garlic cloves, and chopped onions. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for one hour with occasional stirring so that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.

- While the cassoulet simmers, chop up your traditional herb mix of parsley, thyme sprigs (or dried if you don't have fresh on hand), and bay leaves into small pieces.

- Add chopped herbs to the casserole dish along with salt and pepper to taste then stir well. Simmer for another hour or until liquid is thickened somewhat - not too watery though! If necessary, remove some cooking liquid by spoonfuls so that it remains nice & saucy but doesn’t run off the plate when served. This should be a hearty meal – serve with bread or french fries on the side!

Take out of the oven once bubbling hot! The casserole can be eaten right away or stored in the fridge for a day or two and reheated. Enjoy!