Quick Chicken Cassoulet Food

CHEF JOHN'S QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Add bacon to a large, cold oven-ready skillet. Place over medium heat and cook for 10-12 minutes, until almost crisp. Transfer to a bowl, reserving the grease in the pan.
• Stir in sausage slices; cook 3-4 minutes. Add chicken thigh pieces; cook and stir for 5 minutes, until browned. Remove meat to the plate with bacon. Discard all the oil, but don't wipe out the pan.
• Add chopped onion and turn the heat to medium-low; cook and stir for 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add 1 cup of chicken stock.
• Mash about 1/4 of the beans in a small bowl, stir all the beans into the pan.
• Stir in cayenne, rosemary and thyme. Add reserved meat back to the pan. Stir in remaining cup of stock or more if needed to cover. Return to simmer.
• Mix bread crumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano and melted butter together in a small bowl.
• Preheat the oven's broiler and set the oven rack about 7 inches from the heat source.
• Sprinkle the cassoulet with half the bread crumb mixture. Place under the broiler and cook about 5 minutes, until browned.
• Remove the pan and push bread crumbs down into the cassoulet. Top with remaining bread crumb mixture. Return to oven and continue broiling 5 more minutes, until browned.
• Turn off the broiler and leave in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and let sit for 5 minutes. Enjoy.

CAST-IRON SKILLET QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Position a rack in the highest level of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and add them to the pan, skin side down, and lower the heat to medium. Cook, without turning, until the skin renders its fat, becomes brown and crisp and releases easily from pan, about 12 minutes.
• Move the thighs to the far edge of the pan, shingling them against the side so you can cook the vegetables. Add the carrot, onion, 2 of the garlic cloves and the pancetta and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender and translucent, about 6 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the breadcrumbs.
• Reserve 1/2 cup beans and mash them with a fork to make a chunky paste. Stir the remaining beans, chicken broth, thyme sprigs and bay leaves into the pan and season with pepper. Stir the mashed beans into the pan. Nestle the sausages and the chicken pieces into the bean mixture, placing chicken skin-side up. Bring to a simmer, place the skillet in the oven and cook until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick, bubbling and has formed a skin, about 30 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the oven, and set the broiler to high.
• Grate the remaining 2 garlic cloves into a medium bowl with the remaining breadcrumbs and the chopped thyme. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and stir with a fork to evenly coat. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs evenly over the cassoulet and broil until the breadcrumbs are golden and the sauce is bubbly and has formed sort of a crust, rotating the skillet so it evenly browns, about 5 minutes. Serve the cassoulet in the skillet.

WEEKDAY CASSOULET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Rinse and dry the chicken well and season with salt and pepper. Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
• In a large Dutch oven, over medium-low heat, add the bacon and slowly render the fat. Remove the bacon to a plate when crispy, leaving the fat in the pan. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the chicken, skin side down. Brown the chicken on both sides and then remove to a plate. Add the onion, celery, carrots and garlic and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Deglaze the pan with white wine and reduce by half. Stir in the beans, bay leaf and thyme. Nestle the chicken thighs and bacon into the pot. Add the chicken stock, cover and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, remove the lid and top the cassoulet with sliced tomatoes and the Garlic Bread Crumbs. Return to the oven and bake, uncovered, 15 minutes longer. Serve the cassoulet with baguette slices.
• In a small saute pan over low heat, add the oil and the garlic. Stir until the oil is fragrant, about 1 minute. Toss in the bread crumbs and cook until the bread crumbs start to turn golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and remove from heat.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic; cook and stir for a few minutes, until the onion is transparent. Add the sausage to the skillet, and cook for a few more minutes to brown.
• Pour in the kidney beans, cannellini beans and tomatoes, and season with the bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Cover, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender.
• Remove bay leaves and discard. Sprinkle parsley over the top, and serve.

CHEF JOHN'S CASSOULET

Steps:

• Rinse soaked beans and drain.
• Pour broth into a large pot. Add chopped pancetta, bones from duck confit, and the drained beans. Tie bay leaves, peppercorns, thyme sprigs, and garlic into a small square of cheesecloth to create the bouquet garni; add to the pot. Stir. Bring to a simmer over high heat; skim foamy scum that forms, if desired. Reduce heat to low until beans are almost tender, 30 to 45 minutes.
• Sprinkle pork pieces with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; brown the pork pieces, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Add sausage to the skillet and cook in the same oil, turning until nicely browned on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Cut sausages in half and transfer to bowl with pork pieces.
• Remove fat and skin from duck confit and add them to the same skillet. Cook over medium heat until fat is rendered, about 3 minutes. Transfer all fat and browned pieces from the skillet to a mixing bowl. Add melted butter. Stir in bread crumbs and chopped parsley; stir until mixture looks like damp sand. Mix in about 1/4 to 1/2 cup broth.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place onions, carrots, and celery in the same skillet used to brown the meats; add pinch of salt. Cook and stir over medium heat until onions are translucent and mixture turns golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in tomato paste; cook and stir until tomato paste starts to caramelize and stick to the bottom of the pan, 3 or 4 minutes. Pour in white wine; cook and stir until most of the wine evaporates, 5 or 6 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Drain beans over a large bowl to retain all the cooking liquid. Remove bones and bouquet garni.
• Place drained beans in large shallow baking dish or cast iron skillet (about 12 inches in diameter and 3 inches deep). Stir in cooked vegetables and about 1 cup broth. Add pork pieces and distribute evenly among the beans. Top with the shredded duck confit. Nestle the sausage halves into the bean mixture.
• Ladle cooking liquid into the baking dish until beans are nearly submerged. Spread bread crumb mixture evenly over the top but don't press into the liquid. Use your fingertips to make gentle indentations on the crumb surface for better browning.
• Bake in preheated oven until most of the liquid has been absorbed, about 2 hours. Remove from oven and create a small "well" in the center of the cassoulet crust. Ladle about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid (or as needed) into the well to rehydrate mixture. Use a fork to gently poke into the cassoulet to ensure the liquid is fairly evenly distributed but try not to disturb the crusty surface.
• Continue baking until cassoulet surface is crispy and caramelized, the meat is fork tender, and the beans are creamy and tender, about 30 to 45 more minutes.
• Serve in large bowls with a spoonful or 2 of hot cooking liquid. Top with chopped fresh parsley.

QUICK CHICKEN CASSOULET

Steps:

• In a bowl, mix bread crumbs and 2 tablespoons oil until well combined.
• Pour remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil into a 3-quart ovenproof pan over medium heat. When hot, add shallots, garlic, and carrot and stir occasionally until carrot is tender, about 7 minutes. Add beans, chicken, sausages, tomatoes, herbes de Provence, bay leaf, chicken broth, salt, and pepper; stir until well combined.
• Cover and bake in a 350° regular or convection oven until beans are hot, about 30 minutes; uncover and sprinkle top evenly with bread-crumb mixture. Bake until top is browned and edges are bubbling, about 20 minutes longer.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• In a large, lidded stovetop casserole, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
• Brown the chicken, and remove.
• Brown the sausage.
• Add the chicken, carrots, onion and garlic and saute for 2 additional minutes.
• Drain off the fat.
• Stir in the wine, bay leaf, thyme and pepper.
• Cover and simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink.
• Stir in the beans and heat through.
• Sprinkle parsley on top.
• NOTE: Instead of dry red wine, you can substitute 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1 tbsp of red wine vinegar.

QUICK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic; cook and stir for a few minutes, until the onion is transparent. Add the sausage to the skillet, and cook for a few more minutes to brown.
• Pour in the kidney beans, cannellini beans and tomatoes, and season with the bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Cover, and reduce the heat to low.
• Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender.
• Remove bay leaves and discard. Sprinkle parsley over the top, and serve.
• Some good variations - use Herbs de Provence instead of the other herbs listed. Substitute white wine for some of the juice. Great Northern Beans also work instead of cannellini beans.
• Great as leftovers! Serve with bread.

QUICK DUCK AND CHICKEN CASSOULET

Steps:

• In a large casserole dish, brown the duck breasts for about 8 minutes.
• Take the duck breasts out of the casserole.
• Keep 1 tablespoon of the duck fat, and pour away the rest.
• Brown the chicken drumsticks in the casserole dish for about 10 minutes, until they are golden on all sides.
• Take the chicken out of the casserole.
• Put the halved shallots (or chopped onion), crushed garlic and bacon into the casserole, and heat, stirring, for 5 minutes.
• Return the duck and chicken to the casserole.
• Add in the drained cannellini beans, tomatoes, chicken stock, chopped herbs and salami.
• Bring to the boil, then simmer it on the stovetop for an hour and a half.
• Instead of on stovetop, you could put it in the oven for an hour and a half at a medium heat. (I think I used 160 degrees C.).
• Season with salt & black pepper.
• I served this with new baby potatoes tossed in butter, french bread and a salad, and added parsnip and turnip mashed together - but then I had 3 more guests than I'd expected!