Cassoulet Recipe • A Flavorful French Casserole! | Club Foody

 

I have some interesting family roots that I’m sure have an impact on my culinary journey. On my father’s side, they’re Scottish. When my great-great-grandfather Ramsay (that would be hilarious if I’m actually related to Gordon somehow…!) came to Canada in the mid-1800’s, he settled near Québec city. My mother’s descendants originated from France although some books record them back to Surrey, England as early as the 11th century. When her ancestors traveled across the Atlantic in the early 1800’s, they landed in the lower St-Lawrence River. Having said that, I grew up eating different dishes from both my parents’ family’s background.
 
When it comes to my mother’s family, I experienced so many French dishes like Pâté & Foie gras, Choucroute, Soupe à l’Onion, Crêpes, Coq au Vin, Boeuf Bourguignon, Poulet Chasseur (Hunter Chicken), Raclette, Baguettes & croissants, Salade Niçoise, Quiche Lorraine, Gratin dauphinoise, Ratatouille, Baba au rhum, Madeleines, Bûche de Noël, Éclair, Saint Honoré, and many, many more.
 
A dish that my grandmother was making during the cold months of the year was Cassoulet! It was simple and yet amazing!
 
What is a Cassoulet? It’s a French casserole that originated in southern France during the Middle Ages. It contains a variety of different meats which is typically cured salt pork, sausage, chicken or duck and lamb along with white beans, vegetables, tomatoes and herbs such as Herbes de Provence, thyme leaves, parsley, etc. It’s French so of course there is some wine in the dish… Depending on what you have on hand, some meats can be omitted.
 
I’d like to mention a few things about some of the ingredients…
– Let’s start with beans. You don’t have to soak them the night before BUT soaking beans overnight helps to reduce the cooking time plus keeps them tender as they cook. After they’re done, you can collect the broth for later use in the recipe – I prefer using strictly chicken broth so it’s your call.
– Now the sausage… Preferably, saucisses Toulouse is the way to go to keep this Cassoulet recipe as traditional as possible. On the other hand, most of the time, this kind of sausage is not available in your area (it wasn’t in mine). The two best substitutes for this is Kielbasa or Garlic Sausage. When cutting it, we need roughly 2-inch pieces cut in half – the same applies for the lamb after trimming the excess fat.
– The last ingredient I want to mention is the drumsticks. Previously when making this casserole, I always used 4 of them but this time, I decided to use 5 instead… Don’t! There’s not enough space in the Dutch oven to handle that many.
 
This is the perfect comfort food recipe to make this fall. Originally a pheasant dish, this Cassoulet is nothing fancy but has incredible flavor! With a beautiful mix of ingredients, this is a delicious casserole to serve to your family…
Bon Appétit!
 
Here are more scrumptious French recipes for you to try…
– Bouillabaisse à la Marseillaise
– Salade Lyonnaise ~ Lyonnaise Salad
– Blanquette de Veau
– Croque-monsieur Montréal Style
– Sole Meunière
– Steak Tartare
– Mille-Feuille
and for even more International recipes, click on this link… Recipe Category • International

For ingredient amounts, directions and much more, visit https://clubfoody.com/cf-recipes/cassoulet/

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