Cassoulet is a stew of sorts that typically consists of some kind of meat, pork sausage/skin, and white beans. While this is a Midwesternized version of the dish that would probably infuriate the French folks it originated from, it is the one nearest and dearest to me because it's the one my late great Mamabird made and introduced me to cassoulet. Her favorite way to make this was with a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. The dish has such an incredible depth of flavor and is one of the best one pot dishes I know of. It is a super simple preparation once the meat is cooked, too.
While I sometimes make tweaks to this recipe (maybe a little more broth if the chicken is on the dryer side, maybe a little more carrot, I use pork sausage instead of turkey), I'm going to share the exact one she gave me below. For one, I'm happy to be able to share these photos of her impeccable penmanship, but I also crave an opportunity to share an artifact, one of many love letters from my incredible mother who was most content when she was nourishing and teaching others.
Ingredients
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 14 oz. package of polska kielbasa, cut into 1/4" slices (optional to grill these links for a little char before slicing if you are also grilling your own chicken)
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups carrot, chopped
4 grilled or roasted chicken breasts, torn into chunks (or you can use a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket, torn off the bones)
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp dried thyme (or 2 tsp fresh)
1 bay leaf
2 15 oz. cans of white beans (Great Northern or Cannelini)
fresh parsley for topping
Directions
Heat oil and saute onion, carrots & kielbasa until lightly browned.
Add chicken, broth, arlic, thyme, bay leaf & beans. Stir to blend together, cover and cook about 8 minutes (this is the quick part of it, but the more time you allow a low, low simmer, the more flavor you'll get out of it.... you can add a little bit more broth to reduce in there as well).
Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with parsley.
Comentarios