A Hill of Beans

I think beans get a bad rap.  Sure they give you gas, but legumes pack a healthy punch in your humdrum everyday diet.  Beans are full of protein and fiber, which help to keep you satiated longer while lowering cholesterol.  They make a good accompaniment to a host of ingredients and flavors and aren’t all that difficult to make.  So it gives you gas.  All the more reason to make them on a cold, blizzardly weekend when you don’t plan on going anywhere.

And so I sit this weekend, watching the news and keeping my East Coast friends in my thoughts. Seeing these mountains of snow on the television doesn’t do much for my initiative to leave the house.  I think I’ll just stay in.  Perfect weekend for making a homey, hearty dish that takes a long time to finish.  And since I’m not going anywhere, I don’t mind farting all evening.

So last night I began my journey making Sunday’s dinner, a hearty French cassoulet.  People get scared by cassoulet.  First and foremost I think the word scares them –  it’s French so it has to be complicated, right?  Wrong…cassoulet is simply a bean and meat stew baked with a crunchy bread crumb topping. 

Simple.  Straightforward. Delicious.

Now to be honest, I’ve never actually made cassoulet before.  But my research shows it’s simply a matter of cooking simple ingredients separately, then combining them for a final romp in the oven under a blanket of buttery bread crumbs.  Sounds like something that’ll take all day, but not overly complex.  Just what the doctor ordered!

Chicken and Sausage Cassoulet

Traditional cassoulet is usually made with combination of pork bits, sausage, and/or duck confit.  Since I want my kids to at least try this dish, I’m using chicken thighs, legs, and smoked sausage.  Whatever you use, choose meats that can take the beating of a good, long braising.

Put on your jammies (although you may already be in them if you haven’t left the house all day).  Submerge a pound of dried white beans in water for an overnight soak.  Adjourn to your bedroom to watch the rest of the Honey Boo Boo marathon on TV. 

In the morning, drain the beans.  Sweat some onions and garlic in a yummy fat (duck or pork or even olive oil).  Add the soaked beans, some water, maybe a ham hock, and some simple seasonings.  Cover and simmer for an hour or so until the beans are tender.  Most of the liquid should have been absorbed.  Let the beans hang out.

Next, get the meat going.  Brown the meats in yummy fat.  Take out the meat, and saute some more onions, garlic, maybe a carrot in the remaining fat.  Deglaze with white wine.  Now put everyone back in the pool.  Add some canned tomatoes, tomato paste, herb bundle, seasoning and chicken stock.  Let it cook down for an hour and cool slightly.  Pull any meat from the bones;  discard the bones and throw the meat back into the stew.  Combine the beans and the meat stew.  Push some sausage pieces deep into the mixture. Cover it with some buttery, garlicky bread crumbs.  Throw it into a low oven for a couple of hours.

Enjoy the deeply flavored stew with a chunk of good bread.  Adjourn to the bedroom and play a rousing game of ‘turtle’ with someone you love.