Chicken and Sausage Cassoulet

CookBook Challenge Week - 31 

This dish originating from South of France, namely Toulouse and Carcassone. Cassoulet means rich, slow-cooked bean stewed or casserole. This is my favourite food when I ended up in Toulouse during Uni but I have never cook them there before because most restaurants and cafe serves cassoulet and they even have canned cassoulet.

Cassoulet means a lot to me becos it reminded me of the time I had when I was doing my bachelor's degree.
I did alter this recipe here and there because I find that some of the ingredient is abit pricey and some of the preparation is time consuming. For instance, I use raw Chorizo instead of Toulouse sausage, we just need pork or fatty sausage really, if you cant find chorizo just use any pork sausage or any sausage that is up to your budget. Next I substitute haricot beans with baked beans which automatically change the sequence of cooking.

I try to make this recipe as easy as possible and as less time consuming as possible and guess what, the taste of this cassoulet is almost 100% similar to the one I have in Toulouse.

Ingredients:

• 1whole chicken (about 1 kg, cut into 6-8 pieces)
• 4 rashes bacon, finely sliced
• 3 medium size onions, finely sliced
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 chorizo or any pork/fatty sausage, cut into half
• 2 tbsp dried mixed herbs (I found bouquet garni so I use 2 sachet)
• 2 - 3 carrot, sliced
• 2 tomatoes, seeded & chopped
• 1 can baked beans, 420g (you can use white beans, cannellini etc)
• 2 tomato ketchup
• some olive oil or cooking oil
• salt and black/white pepper to taste

Method:-

1. Heat up oil, brown the chicken pieces and set aside.
2. Heat up a large deep pot in medium heat. Once hot, 1 tbsp of oil and the sliced bacon. Fry for around 5 minutes or until the bacon starts to get a bit of colour. 
3. Add in sliced onion and garlic, Stir a bit. Add in chorizo. Cook, turning often until onion, garlic and chorizo turn golden brown on both side.(scrap the bottom once in a while).
4. Add in a little bit of water and scrap the bottom thoroughly.
5. Place chicken pieces on top of the onion mixture and pour in enough water to just cover everything. Season with a good pinch of salt and pepper. Add in mixed herbs or bouquet garni. 
6. Bring to boil then reduce too gentle simmer with lid on for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cook. Check from time to time skimming foam that appear at surface.
7. Check your chicken is cook by gently tugging at a leg. If it comes away easily and the meat pulls apart, it's done. Carefully remove the chicken to a plate or bowl. Cover with foil so that it remain warm.
8. Add carrots to the pot and cook on high heat for 20 minutes or until carrot cooks through. Then, add in tomatoes, baked beans and ketchup. Stir together. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper according to your taste.
9. Put back the chicken into pot. Mix well and let it simmer for 5 minutes before serve.

TIPS:-

• You can substitute Toulouse sausage with chorizo or any other pork sausage or fatty sausage
• You can substitute baked beans with other white beans
• You can substitute bacon with turkey ham or any other ham
• *** the substitution above will not change the cooking sequence and duration***
• You can change chicken to duck confit
• You can serve this with potatoes or rice or salad