My Version of French Cassoulet

In an effort to have more resistant starch in my diet, I looked for bean recipes. Up comes French cassoulet, which also has stock in it's ingredient list. I'm trying to eat more of that too. Perfect!

Cassoulet is a rich, slow-cooked casserole originating in the French region of Languedoc. It was a medieval peasant dish of white beans cooked with various dried meats such as duck, pork, goose or lamb. Whatever was around. The dish is named after its traditional cooking vessel, the cassole, a deep round earthenware pot with slanting sides. Which I don't have, I used a large baking dish.

The key to a perfect cassoulet is the slow cooking process that tenderises the meat and the beans and infuses the stew with its rich flavour. Your house will be filled with the tantalising aroma of herbs and allspice.

Ingredients:

• 500g pork shoulder/chicken breast, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1 tin of white Cannellini beans, thoroughly rinsed
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes (optional)
• 4 chicken/duck legs
• 1 spicy sausage, cut into slices (I used chorizo)
• 200ml homemade stock
• ½ cup red wine
• 1 leek, sliced finely
• 1 celery stick, finely chopped
• 2 shallots, diced
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• mixed handful of fresh parsley, thyme and rosemary, finely chopped
• good pinch of allspice
• salt and pepper to taste
• Large ovenproof dish with a lid.

How To:

1. Chop and prepare all ingredients. Preheat your oven to 150°C.
2. My duck legs were already cooked, so I added them straight into my baking dish. (Confit of duck legs from Lidl.)
3. Brown the pork/chicken chunks and sausage in a large pan. Then add to the baking dish. You can do this in batches to make it easier.
4. Add the leek, celery and carrot to the pan and sauté until tender. Add the shallots, herbs and garlic and cook for another minute. Add the wine and stir for a minute. Add the tomatoes, stock and a good pinch of allspice and bring to a boil. (If you're not using the chopped tomatoes, add the equivalent extra stock.)
5. Pour over the meats in the baking dish.
6. Cover and cook for about two hours or until the beans and meat are fork tender.
7. Serve the cassoulet in bowls, sprinkled with chopped parsley. We had ours with some crusty bread. I think it would also be delicious with some baby boiled potatoes.