Speedy Cassoulet Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Add bacon to a large, cold oven-ready skillet. Place over medium heat and cook for 10-12 minutes, until almost crisp. Transfer to a bowl, reserving the grease in the pan.
• Stir in sausage slices; cook 3-4 minutes. Add chicken thigh pieces; cook and stir for 5 minutes, until browned. Remove meat to the plate with bacon. Discard all the oil, but don't wipe out the pan.
• Add chopped onion and turn the heat to medium-low; cook and stir for 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add 1 cup of chicken stock.
• Mash about 1/4 of the beans in a small bowl, stir all the beans into the pan.
• Stir in cayenne, rosemary and thyme. Add reserved meat back to the pan. Stir in remaining cup of stock or more if needed to cover. Return to simmer.
• Mix bread crumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano and melted butter together in a small bowl.
• Preheat the oven's broiler and set the oven rack about 7 inches from the heat source.
• Sprinkle the cassoulet with half the bread crumb mixture. Place under the broiler and cook about 5 minutes, until browned.
• Remove the pan and push bread crumbs down into the cassoulet. Top with remaining bread crumb mixture. Return to oven and continue broiling 5 more minutes, until browned.
• Turn off the broiler and leave in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and let sit for 5 minutes. Enjoy.

CHICKEN CASSOULET

Steps:

• Place 1/4 cup beans in a small bowl and mash roughly with the back
• of a fork or a potato masher. Add the remaining beans to the bowl.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken in a single layer. Cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Add onion and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon water. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and browned, about 4 minutes. Add rosemary, thyme and pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine; increase heat to high. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits, until the wine has reduced by about half, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add broth, the remaining 14 cup water, kielbasa, the beans and chicken; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve topped with Toasted Breadcrumbs.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic; cook and stir for a few minutes, until the onion is transparent. Add the sausage to the skillet, and cook for a few more minutes to brown.
• Pour in the kidney beans, cannellini beans and tomatoes, and season with the bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Cover, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender.
• Remove bay leaves and discard. Sprinkle parsley over the top, and serve.

SPEEDY CASSOULET

Steps:

• In 3-quart saucepan, heat beans, tomatoes, broth and kielbasa to boiling, stirring occasionally; reduce heat.
• Stir in bell peppers. Simmer uncovered 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with bread crumbs.

CAST-IRON SKILLET QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Position a rack in the highest level of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and add them to the pan, skin side down, and lower the heat to medium. Cook, without turning, until the skin renders its fat, becomes brown and crisp and releases easily from pan, about 12 minutes.
• Move the thighs to the far edge of the pan, shingling them against the side so you can cook the vegetables. Add the carrot, onion, 2 of the garlic cloves and the pancetta and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender and translucent, about 6 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the breadcrumbs.
• Reserve 1/2 cup beans and mash them with a fork to make a chunky paste. Stir the remaining beans, chicken broth, thyme sprigs and bay leaves into the pan and season with pepper. Stir the mashed beans into the pan. Nestle the sausages and the chicken pieces into the bean mixture, placing chicken skin-side up. Bring to a simmer, place the skillet in the oven and cook until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick, bubbling and has formed a skin, about 30 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the oven, and set the broiler to high.
• Grate the remaining 2 garlic cloves into a medium bowl with the remaining breadcrumbs and the chopped thyme. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and stir with a fork to evenly coat. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs evenly over the cassoulet and broil until the breadcrumbs are golden and the sauce is bubbly and has formed sort of a crust, rotating the skillet so it evenly browns, about 5 minutes. Serve the cassoulet in the skillet.

CASSOULET

Steps:

• Drain the beans and put into a large heavy casserole, preferably enameled cast iron, with bacon, pork rind, garlic, 1 onion, the carrot, and the bouquet garni. Cover with the 10 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat, stirring often, until beans are barely tender, about 1 hour. Drain and return to casserole, discarding onion and bouquet garni.
• Add the remaining onion, the duck legs, demi-glace mixture, and tomatoes, and bring to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.
• Drain the bean mixture in a colander over a bowl and reserve 5 cups of the cooking liquid. Discard bacon and pork rind. Remove the duck legs and cut each in half at the joint. Season beans with 1 teaspoon salt and a few grindings of pepper.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place half the bean mixture in casserole. Add duck legs, duck sausage, and garlic sausage, and cover with remaining beans. Add reserved cooking liquid and drizzle the duck fat over the top. Cover and bake until hot and bubbling, about 2 hours. (Cassoulet may be prepared ahead to this point, then cooled and refrigerated for up to 3 days. If refrigerated, bring to room temperature before proceeding).
• Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Uncover cassoulet and bake until top is browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• In a large, lidded stovetop casserole, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
• Brown the chicken, and remove.
• Brown the sausage.
• Add the chicken, carrots, onion and garlic and saute for 2 additional minutes.
• Drain off the fat.
• Stir in the wine, bay leaf, thyme and pepper.
• Cover and simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink.
• Stir in the beans and heat through.
• Sprinkle parsley on top.
• NOTE: Instead of dry red wine, you can substitute 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1 tbsp of red wine vinegar.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic; cook and stir for a few minutes, until the onion is transparent. Add the sausage to the skillet, and cook for a few more minutes to brown.
• Pour in the kidney beans, cannellini beans and tomatoes, and season with the bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Cover, and reduce the heat to low.
• Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender.
• Remove bay leaves and discard. Sprinkle parsley over the top, and serve.
• Some good variations - use Herbs de Provence instead of the other herbs listed. Substitute white wine for some of the juice. Great Northern Beans also work instead of cannellini beans.
• Great as leftovers! Serve with bread.

CASSOULET

Steps:

• Turn the oven to 170C. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the bacon until just crisp. Tip into a shallow, flameproof casserole with a lid. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and fry for 5 mins, until softened. Tip into the casserole.
• Heat the remaining oil in the pan and fry the chicken thighs until golden brown all over, then add to the casserole. Fry the sausages until brown and add to the casserole with the beans. Pour the stock into the pan, scraping any bits from the bottom, and bring to the boil. Add the tomato puree, tomatoes and herbs, stir well, then pour intion the casserole and season.
• Remove from the heat and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the surface in a thick, even layer. Bake uncovered for about 30 mins, until a golden crust is formed. Serve warm.
• Make the dish to the end of step 2, Cool, then transfer to a freezerproof container, cover and freeze for up to 1 month. To reheat from frozen: turn the oven to 160C. Transfer the cassoulet to a casserole and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Cook for 1 hour 25 mins or until hot and bubbling and a crust has formed.