Best 8 Duck Cassoulet Recipes

DUCK CASSOULET

Steps:

• In a large skillet, brown the sliced sausage over medium heat.
• Insert whole cloves into onion. Roll bacon up, and tie with a string. Tie together parsley, thyme, and rosemary.
• In a large slow cooker, place soaked beans, sausage, bacon, onion studded with cloves, fresh herbs, bay leaf, carrots, minced garlic, and duck. Add enough water to cover the other ingredients. Cook for 1 hour on HIGH. Reduce heat to LOW, and continue cooking for 6 to 8 hours.
• Remove onion, bacon, and herbs. Stir in chopped tomatoes. Continue cooking for 1/2 hour. Serve.

CASSOULET (FRENCH STEW MADE WITH DUCK AND SAUSAGE)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. FOR THE BEANS: In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Saute the onions and celery for 4 minutes, or until they are slightly wilted.
• Add the beans, salt, cayenne, water and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cook until beans are tender and most of the water is absorbed, about 2 hours.
• FOR THE MEATS: In a large oven proof skillet, over medium high heat, combine the flour and oil. Stirring constantly, make a medium brown roux.
• Add the onions, celery, bell peppers, carrots, salt and cayenne. Stirring constantly, cook for 4 minutes or until vegetables are slightly wilted.
• Add the duck legs and sausages and cook for 3 minutes on each side.
• Add the chicken broth and stir the mixture until the roux and broth are combined and mixture thickens. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pot to loosen any brown particles. Bring to a boil. Add the beans and duck meat. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook for 30 minutes.
• FOR THE GRATINE: In a mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, and olive oil. Mix well. When the bean/meat mixture is cooked, spoon the gratine evenly over the top and bake for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon a serving of the mixture from the pan onto a plate and add garnishments.

WHITE BEAN, SAUSAGE, DUCK CONFIT CASSOULET (DAVID LEBOVITZ)

Steps:

• Rinse the beans and sort for debris. Soak them overnight covered in cold water.
• The next day, put the ham hock in a separate large pot of water, bring it to a boil, decrease the heat to a steady simmer, and cook for about 2 hours, until the meat is tender and pulls easily from the bone. Remove the ham hock from the water and set it on a plate. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, shred it in large, bite-size pieces, and refrigerate it. Discard the liquid.
• Drain the beans; put them in the pot you used to cook the ham hock and cover with cold water. Add the ham bones to the pot of beans along with the diced pork belly, carrots, onions, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Bring the beans to a boil, decrease the heat so the beans are simmering gently, and cook until the beans are soft and tender, about 1 hour, or longer, depending on the beans. As the water boils away during cooking, add more water as necessary. Taste the beans toward the end of cooking, add up to 1 tablespoon of salt, if necessary.
• While the beans are cooking, scrape any excess fat from the duck confit pieces (save it for making duck fat-fried potatoes, page 220) and fry them in a skillet over medium heat until they're golden brown and crisp on both sides, 5 to 8 minutes per side. (If using the Counterfeit duck confit on page 179, the duck will already be browned and ready, so there's no need to recook it for this step.)
• Transfer the duck pieces to a plate and pour off any excess duck fat from the pan. Prick the sausages a few times with a sharp knife, then fry the sausages just to brown them on the outside; they don't need to be fully cooked through. Set the sausages on the plate with the duck pieces. When cool enough to handle, cut the sausages on the diagonal into 2-inch pieces. Cut each duck thigh into three pieces; cut the drumstick off, and then use a knife to divide the thigh portion into two equal pieces, cutting it in half by holding the knife parallel to the bone.
• Transfer the duck pieces to a plate and pour off any excess duck fat from the pan. Prick the sausages a few times with a sharp knife, then fry the sausages just to brown them on the outside; they don't need to be fully cooked through. Set the sausages on the plate with the duck pieces. When cool enough to handle, cut the sausages on the diagonal into 2-inch pieces. Cut each duck thigh into three pieces; cut the drumstick off, and then use a knife to divide the thigh portion into two equal pieces, cutting it in half by holding the knife parallel to the bone.
• Puree the onion and garlic in a blender or food processor with a bit of the bean liquid until smooth. Stir the mixture back into the bean mixture, season with pepper, and taste, adding more salt if desired. (Some pork products are quite salty, so at this point, you can adjust the salt to your taste.)
• Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C) with an oven rack to the top third of the oven.
• In a wide casserole that holds at least 8 quarts (8l) or a roasting pan, assemble the cassoulet. Ladle a layer of the bean mixture and some of the liquid into the casserole. Put half of the duck pieces and half of the sausage evenly spaced over the beans. Add another layer of beans, and then put the rest of the duck and sausage pieces over the beans. Top with the remaining beans and enough of the liquid so that the beans are just barely floating in the liquid. (Refrigerate any extra bean liquid, as you may need it later. Or if there isn't enough bean liquid, add a bit more water, just enough to moisten the beans.)
• Toss the bread crumbs with the oil until thoroughly moistened, then spread the bread crumbs evenly on top of the cassoulet. Bake the cassoulet for 1 hour. After an hour, use the side of a large spoon or a heatproof spatula to break the crust on top in several places. Decrease the oven temperature to 250°F (120°C) and bake the cassoulet for another 2 ½ hours, breaking the crust two more times while cooking. Remove the cassoulet from the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes. If you want to serve the cassoulet reheated, as many prefer it, let it cool to room temperature for 1 ½ hours, and then refrigerate it.
• To serve the cassoulet reheated, remove the cassoulet from the refrigerator 1 hour before you plan to reheat it. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Break through a piece of the top of the cassoulet, and if you don't see much liquid surrounding the beans beneath the surface, add some of the reserved bean liquid (or warm water)-just enough to moisten the insides a little, about ½ cup (125ml). Bake the cassoulet for 1 ½ hours, or until it's completely heated through. If the topping isn't crusty, turn the oven up to broil-if you're using a ceramic dish, turn the oven just to 450°F (230°C), or whatever maximum heat is indicated by the manufacturer-and watch carefully until the top is browned to your liking. Remove the cassoulet from the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes. Serve the cassoulet in its dish at the table. It requires no other accompaniment, although a glass of Armagnac after (or in place of ) dessert is considered obligatory to aid digestion. As is a pat on the back for making the cassoulet.

WILD MALLARD DUCK CASSOULET WITH DUCK CONFIT, WHITE BEANS, SURRY COUNTY SAUSAGE, BRAISED GREENS, AND POACHED DUCK FOIE GRAS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the cassoulet: In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Add shallots, white beans, duck confit, sausage, and the reserved bean braising liquid. Simmer to blend flavors, about 15 to 20 minutes. If needed, add the reserved duck stock to maintain a sauce-like but not syrupy consistency. At the very end, add the local braising greens. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Keep warm.
• For the duck breast: Season duck with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the clarified butter. Place the duck breasts in the pan skin side down. Sear the breasts until the skin is crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip, add the garlic cloves, rosemary sprigs, and fresh butter. Bake until medium-rare, about 3 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the duck. Let rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.
• For the foie gras: Place the portioned duck foie gras into a heavy duty freezer bag, pressing out the excess air to seal. Bring a saucepan or water to a gentle simmer. When ready to serve the dish, drop the bag of foie gras into the simmering water for about 2 minutes, until the foie gras is softened throughout.
• In a bowl, spoon the white bean ragout into the center. Allow the sauce to fill the bottom of the dish. Slice the duck breast, and place on the ragout skin side up. Open the bag of poached foie gras and season with kosher salt and white pepper. Place on top of the sliced duck breasts and enjoy.

DUCK CASSOULET (CROCK POT)

Steps:

• In a large skillet, brown the sliced sausage over medium heat.
• Insert whole cloves into onion. Roll bacon up, and tie with a string. Tie together parsley, thyme, and rosemary.
• In a large slow cooker, place soaked beans, sausage, bacon, onion studded with cloves, fresh herbs, bay leaf, carrots, minced garlic, and duck.
• Add enough water to cover the other ingredients. Cook for 1 hour on HIGH. Reduce heat to LOW, and continue cooking for 6 to 8 hours.
• Remove onion, bacon, and herbs. Stir in chopped tomatoes. Continue cooking for 1/2 hour. Serve.

CONFIT OF DUCK BREAST AND SAUSAGE CASSOULET

Steps:

• Drain cooked beans and pour into an electric slow cooker (4 1/2 qt or larger).
• Remove skin from duck breasts. Place breasts on a bowl and add salt and sugar. Let sit 30 minutes, refrigerated. Rinse breasts well under running water and cut meat into 1 in chunks.
• In a large skillet, brown bacon until crisp. Discard all but 1 tbs fat from skillet. Add onions and garlic to bacon and stir until onion begins to brown. Add broth and wine, bring to a boil, scraping browned bits from bottom of skillet.
• Pour broth mixture into slow cooker with the beans. Add the rest of the ingredients and place duck pieces on top.Cover pot and cook for 5-6 hours.
• Uncover and add the sausage slices. Let cook for 10-15 minutes.
• Serve hot.

WHOLE DUCK CASSOULET

Steps:

• the meat and cut the meat into small pieces. 7. Heat 2 tablespoons reserved duck fat in a medium skillet over medium-high heat, add the sausage and cook, turning as necessary until well browned; transfer to a cutting board and slice into quarter-inch rounds; don't wash out the pan. 8. Heat the oven to 375. Transfer a layer of beans to a large enameled cast-iron pot with a slotted spoon to leave behind most of the cooking liquid. Layer half of the sausage and bacon on top, then another layer of beans, then half the duck-and-lamb mixture; repeat the layers until you have used all the beans and meat. 9. Put the pot over medium heat and bring to a simmer, uncovered, then turn off heat. Cover with bread crumbs and chopped parsley leaves and bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. 10. While the cassoulet is in the oven, put the skillet used for cooking the sausage over medium-high heat. When it's hot, cook the duck breasts, skin-side down, until they release easily from the pan, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn and cook to rare, just another minute or 2. Remove the duck from the pan with a slotted spoon and pour the drippings from the pan over the cassoulet; reduce oven heat to 350. 11. Bake the cassoulet until it's hot, bubbling and crusted around the edges, 30 to 40 minutes; add a little duck stock if it starts to look too dry. Slice the duck breasts on the diagonal and transfer them to the pot, tucking them into the bread crumbs. Cook until the breasts are medium rare, another 5 minutes or so, then serve.

WHOLE-DUCK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Boil 5 quarts of water and add the beans. Remove from heat and soak for 1 hour. Make a bouquet garni with the parsley stems, thyme, bay leaves and cloves. Add it, along with the bacon, to the beans; bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook, skimming occasionally, until the beans are just tender, 45 to 90 minutes. Taste and adjust. Salt and pepper the lamb. Put 3 tbsp duck fat in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the lamb and brown well. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 5 or 6 minutes; turn off heat. Add the confit and garlic to the pot with the lamb, along with 2 cups stock, tomatoes, garlic and cayenne. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer; cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the lamb is very tender, 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Taste and adjust. Discard the bouquet garni. Cut fat from bacon and cut the meat into small pieces. Heat 2 tablespoons reserved duck fat in a medium skillet over medium-high heat, add the sausage and cook, turning, until well browned; transfer and slice into quarter-inch rounds; don't wash out the pan. Heat the oven to 375. Transfer a layer of beans to a large enameled cast-iron pot with a slotted spoon to leave behind most of the cooking liquid. Layer half of the sausage and bacon on top, then beans, then half the duck-and-lamb; repeat. Put the pot over medium heat and bring to a simmer, uncovered, then turn off heat. Cover with parsley and bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Put the skillet over medium-high heat. When it's hot, cook the duck breasts, skin-side down, until they release easily, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn and cook to rare, 1-2 min. Remove the duck, and pour the drippings over the cassoulet; reduce oven heat to 350. Bake the cassoulet until it's bubbling and crusted around the edges, 30 to 40 min; add a little stock if needed. Slice the duck breasts and transfer them to the pot. Cook until the breasts are medium rare, another 5 minutes or so, then serve.