PORK CASSOULET 

Cassoulet – a slow cooked pork and bean dish - were traditionally made in the South of France and mainly consist out of pork, pork sausages, goose and beans and topped with breadcrumbs and crackling.

It became a nursery and comfort dish that are now made world-wide with a large variety of ingredients.

Beans were traditionally soaked in a mixture of aromatic herbs and vegetable stock – but using tinned beans will make no difference to your hungry family on a chilly winters night.

This is my variation on traditional cassoulet but with an eastern touch. – and soon will become one of your families favourits too.

(recipe will serve 6 people)

1 x Deboned pork shoulder cut into cubes

400 g of pork sausages

4 onions - sliced

4 large garlic cloves - chopped

20 ml masala

6 cardamom seeds

4 pieces of star anise

10 ml cinnamon

5 ml whole cumin

15 ml grounded cumin

2 whole dried red chilies

30 ml brown sugar

15 ml dried parsely

15 ml dried thyme

5 ml grounded ginger

1 piece of fresh ginger root – crushed

1 tomato puree sachet

1 liter chicken stock

1 tin Butter Beans

1 tin Red Kidney Beans

Gently brown die pork meat and sausages in a heave base pot over a hight heat.

Once browned – remove from stove and keep separate.

In the same pot – fry the onions with olive oil and salt until cooked through and translucent.

Add in the garlic and cook for 1 more minute

Combine the masala, cardamom, star anise, cinnamon, cumin, chilies, sugar and add to the onions. Fry for 2 more minutes until the spices are well toasted

Add in the parsley, thyme, ground ginger and ginger root followed by the pork and sausages.

Fry for a few minutes, making sure that the meat are well coated with the spices.

Combine the stock and tomato paste, add to the pot and simmer over a medium heat for 90 minutes.

Keep checking on it – stirring gently through once or twice.

You might need to fill on the stock.

Remove the cardamom, star anise, ginger & chili from the pot and add in the beans.

Gently simmer for 10 more minutes.

If needed – thicken the sauce with a cornflour paste.

Topped with lots of freshly chopped parsley & coriander and serve.

TIPS:

• This Cassoulet will freeze very well – but if you are planning on freezing it, do not add the beans, until it is defrosted and heated up.
• If you cant get hold of cardamom or star-anise, simply leave it out and add 5 ml of aniseeds.
• You can substitute the pork with lamb meat.
• A de-boned pork shoulder are traditionally called a 'pork butt'.