French Bean Stew

The French are masters of slow cooking. Preparing the traditional stew "cassoulet" with white beans and various types of meat will take a lot of time, but believe me, its worth the wait as the dish is truly excellent!

Details

  • Preparation Time: 20 minutes
  • Cooking Time: 390 minutes
  • Difficulty: 2
  • Spiciness: 0
  • Number of Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 450 g Beans, grains

  • 10 spoon Fat, goose

  • 8 pods Garlic, fresh

  • 2 piece Onion, raw

  • 2 piece Carrot, fresh

  • 2 piece Meat, pork, smoked loin

  • 450 g Meat, pork, shoulder

  • 200 g Meat, pork, smoked bacon

  • 4 twig Spices, oregano, dried

  • 4 twig Thyme, fresh

  • 3 pieces Spices, bay (leaves)

  • 240 ml Tomato, pieces - can

  • 200 ml Alcohol, Wine, White

  • 500 ml Soup base, beef, cube

  • 400 g Carniolan sausage

  • 150 g Breadcrumbs, dried

Steps

  1. Clean the carrots, peel them with a knife, and wash them. Cut them into small pieces. Peel the onion and garlic, and finely chop them.

  2. Place a thick-bottomed pot on the stove and heat two tablespoons of duck fat over medium heat. Add half of the garlic, onion, and carrots to the heated fat. Sauté the vegetables for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the smoked pork hocks and the beans along with the water they were soaked in. Add more water if needed. Slowly cook the beans for about 1.5 hours or until they soften.

  3. Remove the smoked pork hocks from the pot and let them cool. Then remove the skin and separate the meat from the bone. Cut the meat into smaller pieces and return it to the pot. Set the pot with the beans aside.

  4. Cut the pork meat into 1 x 1 cm cubes. Cut the pancetta into smaller pieces. Tie the oregano and thyme sprigs and bay leaves together to form a herb bouquet.

  5. Place a new thick-bottomed pot on the stove and heat two tablespoons of duck fat. Sauté the pork pieces in the heated fat, stirring occasionally. Add the pancetta and cook for about 5 minutes over moderate heat. Then add the remaining garlic, onion, and carrots, and sauté for another 10 minutes. Add the herb bouquet and tomato pieces. Cook over moderate heat until the liquid thickens (8 to 10 minutes). Then add the wine and wait until half of it evaporates. Pour in the broth and wait for the liquid to boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat slightly and simmer uncovered for about 1 hour to thicken the liquid.

  6. Remove the herb bouquet from the pot and set it aside. Heat two tablespoons of duck fat in a pan. Fry the pork sausages in the heated fat, turning them to ensure they brown evenly on all sides. Transfer the sausages to a cutting board and slice them into 0.5 cm thick rounds.

  7. Preheat the oven to 150°C. Place all the ingredients (beans, meat, and sausages) in a clay baking dish and gently mix them with a spoon. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and drizzle with the remaining duck fat. Place the dish in the preheated oven for about 3 hours. Finally, increase the temperature to 250°C and bake for another 5 minutes until the breadcrumbs turn golden brown.

  8. Serve the prepared dish directly in the baking dish and accompany it with bread.

Nutrition Information (Per 100g)

  • Calories: 252.5 kcal
  • Fat: 13.17 g
    • Saturated Fat: 4.32 g
  • Carbohydrates: 17.9 g
    • Sugars: 1.68 g
  • Protein: 13.28 g
  • Fiber: 4.12 g

Advice

Instead of duck fat, you can use olive oil or another vegetable oil. Traditionally, the dish also requires 4 duck legs in confit (French confit). This is a French method of preserving salted meat in pork or goose fat.