Cassoulet French Stew Made With Duck And Sausage Recipes

TRADITIONAL FRENCH CASSOULET RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cover beans with 3 quarts water and add salt. Stir to combine and let sit at room temperature overnight. Drain and rinse beans and set aside.
• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 300°F (150°C). Place stock in a large liquid measuring cup and sprinkle gelatin over the top. Set aside. Heat duck fat (if using) in a large Dutch oven over high heat until shimmering. Add salt pork and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned all over, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl, leaving rendered fat in Dutch oven, and set aside. (If not using duck fat, cook pork with no additional fat.)
• Season chicken pieces with pepper (do not add salt) and place skin side down in now-empty pan. Cook without moving until well-browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Flip chicken pieces and continue cooking until lightly browned on second side, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer to bowl with salt pork.
• Add sausages and cook, turning occasionally, until well-browned on both sides. Transfer to bowl with salt pork and chicken. Drain all but 2 tablespoons fat from pot.
• Add onions to pot and cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Cook until onions are translucent but not browned, about 4 minutes. Add drained beans, carrot, celery, garlic, parsley, bay leaves, cloves, and stock/gelatin mixture. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce to low, cover Dutch oven, and cook until beans are almost tender but retain a slight bite, about 45 minutes.
• Using tongs, remove carrots, celery, parsley, bay leaves, and cloves and discard. Add meats to pot and stir to incorporate, making sure that the chicken pieces end up on top of the beans with the skin facing upwards. Beans should be almost completely submerged. Transfer to oven and cook, uncovered, until a thin crust forms on top, about 2 hours, adding more water by pouring it carefully down the side of the pot, as necessary, to keep beans mostly covered.
• Break crust with a spoon and shake pot gently to redistribute. Return to oven and continue cooking, stopping to break and shake the crust every 30 minutes until you reach the 4 1/2 hour mark. Return to oven and continue cooking undisturbed until the crust is deep brown and thick, about 5 to 6 hours total. Serve immediately.

FRENCH CASSOULET - PORK AND WHITE BEAN CASSEROLE

Steps:

• For the Duck Confit: Process salt, onion, garlic, peppercorns, parsley, and bay leaves in food processor until a smooth paste with some small chunks forms, about 30 seconds, scraping down side of bowl as necessary. Massage duck legs with salt mixture and place in gallon-sized zipper-lock bag. Press out air, seal bag, and place in refrigerator 12 to 18 hours For the Bean Stew: Dissolve 2 tbsp salt in 3 quarts cold water in large bowl or container. Add beans and soak at room temperature, 8 to 24 hours. ** Drain and rinse well. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300°F. Rinse duck legs under cold running water, rubbing off any salt mixture. Pat legs dry with paper towels. Heat duck fat in large saucepan over med heat until completely transparent (if using canola oil, it should register about 135°F on instant-read thermometer). Add duck legs, making sure they are completely submerged in fat. Transfer pot to oven and cook until meat offers no resistance when poked with a fork, 3 to 4 hours. Using kitchen twine, tie together celery, bay leaf, and thyme, and set aside. Place sausage and salt pork in med saucepan and add cold water to cover by 1 inch; bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 5 minutes. Transfer sausages to a cutting board, allow to cool slightly, then cut into 1-inch pieces. Remove salt pork from water; set aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in 8-quart Dutch oven over med-high heat until beginning to smoke. Add sausage pieces and brown on all sides, 8 to 12 minutes total. Transfer to med bowl. Add pork shoulder and brown on all sides, 8 to 12 minutes. Add onion and carrots; cook, stirring constantly, until onion is translucent, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 30 seconds. Return sausage to Dutch oven; add white wine, using wooden spoon to scrape browned bits from bottom of pan. Cook until slightly reduced, about 30 seconds. Stir in diced tomatoes, celery bundle, and reserved salt pork. Stir in broth and beans, pressing beans into even layer. If any beans are completely exposed, add up to 1-cup water to submerge (beans may still break surface of liquid). Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Cover pot, transfer to oven, and cook until beans are tender, about 1-1/2 hours. Remove confit and stew from oven and increase temperature to 350°F. Using slotted spoon, transfer duck legs to large plate and cool slightly. Once cool enough to handle, remove skin from duck legs and discard. Remove meat from bones, leaving meat in large pieces; discard bones. The cooked confit, covered with fat, will last up to one month in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, remove celery bundle and salt pork from bean stew and discard. (Alternatively, dice salt pork and return to stew.) Using large spoon or ladle, skim fat from surface of stew. Adjust seasoning of stew with salt and pepper. Add duck meat and stir gently to combine. Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. For the Breadcrumb Topping: Meanwhile, pulse bread and remaining 2 tbsp oil in food processor until crumbs are no larger than 1/8 inch, eight to ten 1-second pulses. Transfer to med bowl, add parsley, and toss to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle 1/2 cup breadcrumb mixture evenly over casserole; bake, covered, 15 minutes. Remove lid and bake 15 minutes longer. Sprinkle remaining breadcrumb mixture over top of casserole and bake until topping is golden brown and beans are bubbling around edges of pot, about 30 minutes. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.
• To make Cassoulet: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Rinse and dry the chicken well and season with salt and pepper. Let sit at room temperature 15 minutes. In a large Dutch oven, over medium low heat, add the bacon and slowly render the fat. Remove the bacon to a plate when crispy, leaving the fat in the pan. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the chicken, skin side down. Brown the chicken on both sides and then remove to a plate. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, another minute. Deglaze the pan with white wine and reduce by half. Stir in beans, bay leaf, and thyme. Nestle chicken thighs and bacon back into pot. Add the chicken stock, cover, and bake in the oven for 35 minutes. During the last 15 minutes of cook time, remove the lid and cover the top with sliced tomatoes and the Garlic Bread Crumbs. Serve cassoulet with a baguette. To make Breadcrumbs: In a small sauté pan over low heat, add the oil and the garlic. Stir until the oil is fragrant, about 1 minute. Toss in the breadcrumbs and cook until the breadcrumbs start to turn golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and remove from heat.
• Combine the herbs and salt. Rub the salt mixture into the duck legs. Place the duck legs in a large Ziploc bag, place in fridge and let marinate for 24 hours. Remove duck from bag, rinse and pat dry. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place duck in the bottom of a baking dish just big enough to hold the duck in a single layer, skin side up, covering the bottom completely. Cover with the lard and oil. The fat should just cover the top. If it doesn't quite cover, pour in a bit more oil until it does. Put duck in oven and reduce the heat to200°F. Bake, uncovered at 210°F for 1 hour 45 minutes. Turn the oven off and let cool inside the oven for an additional 30 minutes. Remove duck from oven. Strain the legs and set aside to cool. Once cooled, shred it. If you are going to keep the confit for a while, press the meat into a small glass or porcelain container and then cover with a layer of the melted fat. If you're going to use the meat straight away, don't bother with this step. But in either case, keep the fat for roasting potatoes! Covered in the fat, sealed and stored in the refrigerator, duck confit will hold up to a month.

CASSOULET (FRENCH STEW MADE WITH DUCK AND SAUSAGE)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. FOR THE BEANS: In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Saute the onions and celery for 4 minutes, or until they are slightly wilted.
• Add the beans, salt, cayenne, water and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cook until beans are tender and most of the water is absorbed, about 2 hours.
• FOR THE MEATS: In a large oven proof skillet, over medium high heat, combine the flour and oil. Stirring constantly, make a medium brown roux.
• Add the onions, celery, bell peppers, carrots, salt and cayenne. Stirring constantly, cook for 4 minutes or until vegetables are slightly wilted.
• Add the duck legs and sausages and cook for 3 minutes on each side.
• Add the chicken broth and stir the mixture until the roux and broth are combined and mixture thickens. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pot to loosen any brown particles. Bring to a boil. Add the beans and duck meat. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook for 30 minutes.
• FOR THE GRATINE: In a mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, and olive oil. Mix well. When the bean/meat mixture is cooked, spoon the gratine evenly over the top and bake for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon a serving of the mixture from the pan onto a plate and add garnishments.