Forty Minute Cassoulet
Cassoulet in forty minutes or less is heresy, of course, but even “real” cassoulet was designed as a bean stew containing whatever meat, preferably fatty and flavorful, was available to throw in. That’s the spirit here, too. Although the pork tenderloin need not be browned before further cooking, the sausage benefits from a quick browning, definitely worth the five-minute effort. If you can get duck confit, just brown it lightly on both sides, adding both it and its fat to the stew in place of the duck breast.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Combine the tomato and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and add the beans; bring to a boil again, stirring occasionally, then reduce the heat so the mixture bubbles regularly but not furiously. Cook for about 20 minutes, adding the liquid when the mixture becomes thick. Add the salt and cayenne when the beans are tender and flavorful.
Step 2
Meanwhile, put the sausage in a skillet and turn the heat to medium-high; brown on both sides, turning only once or twice. Add the sausage to the tomato-bean mixture, along with the pork. Raise the heat a bit if necessary to keep a simmer going. Stir the beans occasionally so the pork chunks cook evenly.
Step 3
Cut a 1/2-inch cross-hatch pattern in the skin side of the duck breast, right down to the fat layer. Put the breast in the same skillet as the sausage, skin side down, and turn the heat to medium-high. Cook until nicely browned, pouring any rendered duck fat and juices into the bean mixture. Turn the duck and brown the meat side, then crisp up the skin side again for a minute or so, once more pouring any juice into the beans. Total cooking time for the breast will be 6 to 8 minutes.
Step 4
To serve, carve the sausage and duck breast into serving pieces and put on each of 4 or 6 plates. Top with beans and pork.
Variation
Step 5
An optional additional step (which is not particularly time consuming and certainly not at all difficult) that will give the dish the look of a traditional cassoulet: In step 4, combine the cut-up duck (or the browned duck confit if you were able to substitute it) with the beans and pork in a shallow baking dish. Finish the dish by toasting some bread crumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper, in the fat remaining from browning the duck. Sprinkle these on top of the stew, then run under the broiler to brown just before serving.
