White Bean Cassoulet (Traditional French Dish)

Cassoulet is a traditional French dish, originally from south of France, mainly Toulouse.

All cassoulet dishes are made with white haricot beans and a variety of meats. Sausage and bacon are a must, and you can add chicken, beef, lamb, goose, and even rabbit. In my recipe of cassoulet, I used bacon, sausage, chicken, and lamb. The aromatic herbs are necessary for cassoulet (bouquet garnis), and the herbs should be southern like “Herbes de Provence” or thyme and rosemary. This dish requires some preparation, but the result is wonderful.

Ingredients

- 1 onion, finely chopped

- 5-6 garlic, chopped

- 1 carrot, peeled and diced

- 2 celery sticks, diced

- 1 tbsp. fresh thyme

- 1 tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary

- 4 tbsp. vegetable oil (I use canola)

- 1 tsp salt

- Freshly ground black pepper

- 200 grams bacon (You can use turkey bacon), diced

- 250 grams sausages, diced (You can use any kind but it should be spicy)

   (I used Italian sausage)

- 300 grams chicken breasts cut into chunks

- 300 grams chicken thighs, deboned, and cut into chunks

- 500 grams lamb chops or beef, cut into chunks

- 4 cans white haricot beans, washed and drained

- 1 can crushed tomatoes

- 1 tbsp. tomato paste

- 2 bay leaves

- 250 ml chicken or vegetable stock (Make sure it’s gluten-free)

- ½ tsp allspice

- ½ tsp ground cinnamon

- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg

Method

1. Put the oil in a deep frying pan and cook the onions until translucent and soft.
2. Add the garlic, diced carrots, celery, and ½ tsp salt.
3. Stir well for few minutes, until the vegetables are done.
4. Add the herbs and the tomato paste and stir well.
5. Put off the heat and transfer the cooked vegetables into a bowl.
6. Put the frying pan back on the heat.
7. Add the diced bacon and sausage and stir well.
8. Cook for few minutes until crispy and brown.
9. Transfer the bacon and sausage to a bowl and keep some of the fat in the pan.
10. Put the chicken pieces in the pan and cook on the two sides until done.
11. Transfer the chicken pieces to a plate.
12. Put the lamb chops in the frying pan and cook on both sides until done.
13. Transfer the lamb chops to a plate.
14. Now use a deep pot and put all the ingredients in.
15. Start with the cooked vegetables; add the bacon and sausage, then the cooked chicken and lamb.
16. Add the crushed tomatoes, the haricot beans, the stock, bay leaves, all the spices and the remaining salt.
17. Stir well and bring to a boil.
18. Transfer the whole batch into an ovenproof dish or a baking dish.
19. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C.
20. Put the dish in the oven for 1 hour, until bubbly and thick.
21. Serve with salad or with cooked rice.

Yields: 8 portions