Classic French Cassoulet by Gargantua

Ingredients

• 500g dried tarbais beans
• 4 toulouse sausages
• 4 duck legs confit
• 250g salted pork belly
• 2 onions
• 3 carrots
• 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf)
• 250ml demi-glace sauce
• 500ml poultry stock (or chicken broth)
• 1 duck fat/jus (from confit)

Instructions

1. The night before, soak the dried beans in plenty of water in the refrigerator.
2. The next day, drain the beans and place them in a pot with cold water. Bring to a boil for 5 minutes, then drain.
3. In a large pot or Dutch oven, sear the salted pork belly until well-colored and fat is rendered. Remove the pork belly and set aside.
4. Add the soaked beans, chopped onions, chopped carrots, and bouquet garni to the pot. Cover with cold water by at least 5cm.
5. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 1 hour.
6. While the beans are cooking, gently reheat the duck confit legs (if vacuum-sealed, warm in their bag in a bain-marie). Collect all the rendered fat and juices from the duck confit bags.
7. Sear the Toulouse sausages in a separate pan until browned.
8. After 1 hour of cooking the beans, drain them, but reserve the cooking liquid.
9. Assemble the cassoulet in a large cassole or oven-safe dish: layer some pork belly, a few spoonfuls of duck jus, a layer of beans, the sausages, duck legs, and remaining pork belly. Cover everything with the rest of the beans, leaving the meat slightly exposed to crisp.
10. Season with salt and pepper. Add the reserved bean cooking liquid until it almost covers the beans.
11. Bake in a preheated oven at 150°C (300°F) for 3 to 3.5 hours.
12. During baking, a crust will form; gently stir this crust back into the cassoulet 4-5 times to prevent it from burning or drying out.