From Daniel’s Dish: Entertaining at Home with
a Four-Star Chef (Filipacchi Publishing, 2003)
Photo: Peter Medilek
Daniel’s Casual Cassoulet
From: Daniel’s Dish: Entertaining at
Home with a Four-Star Chef (Filipacchi
Publishing, 2003) by Daniel Boulud
Yield: 8 servings
2 T. unsalted butter
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 ( 4 lb.) Pekin duck, legs and breast
removed, split
1½ lbs. lamb shoulder, cut into 8 pieces
The National Culinary Review | October 2009
34
start to see more cassoulets appearing on
menus as time goes by, for two reasons.
First, people continue to look for comfort
foods, and a cassoulet is one of the
best comfort foods you can offer. And,
second, it could be an inexpensive recipe
for restaurants to prepare by utilizing
inexpensive cuts of meat.”
At Café Boulud, Kaysen prepares a
traditional cassoulet with Pekin duck
(legs and breasts removed and split), lamb
shoulder, housemade Toulouse sausages
8 Toulouse or sweet Italian link sausages
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 lb. slab bacon, cut into 8 large cubes
2 large onions, ½-inch dice
4 large carrots, ½-inch dice
2 large stalks celery, peeled, ½-inch dice
1 garlic head, separated into cloves,
peeled, sliced
Bouquet garni (1 bay leaf, 4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, 3 sprigs thyme) tied with
strip of leek green
2 T. tomato paste
1 lb. tomatoes, peeled, seeded, ½-inch dice
2½ lbs. (about 6 cups) Tarbais beans (or
cannelini), pre-soaked in cold water
8-12 hours
Piment d’espelette, or sweet paprika/
cayenne, to taste
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
3 T. coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
leaves
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
6 T. melted unsalted butter, melted duck
fat or vegetable oil
1) Center rack in oven; preheat oven
to 400ºF. 2) In shallow 12-quart pot
or Dutch oven over medium heat, melt
butter with oil. 3) Season duck, lamb
and sausage with salt and pepper. Add
to pot. Add bacon. Brown meats evenly
on all sides. Add onion, carrot, celery,
sliced garlic and bouquet garni; cook,
(or housemade sweet Italian link sausages)
and bacon. “We will charge $36 per order,
with a food cost of 22%,” he says.
He adds, “You could always spice it up a
bit and add a merquez sausage, or you
could add hunting-style German sausage.
You also can use rabbit to play around a
bit. These are items that I find still hold
the qualities of a proper cassoulet. You
really can’t take too much of a variation.
It’s critical to stay true to the tradition—
that’s what makes it a cassoulet.”
without color, stirring, for 10 minutes.
Add tomato paste; mix well. Add
tomatoes, beans and 16 cups water;
slowly bring to a boil. Cover pot; bake
1-1½ hours, until beans are tender (do
not overcook beans). After 45 minutes,
check cassoulet; if needed, add more
water. 4) Remove cassoulet from oven.
Season with salt, pepper and piment
d’espelette. Reduce oven to 350ºF.
5) In mixing bowl, combine
breadcrumbs, parsley and chopped
garlic; season with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle half breadcrumb topping over
cassoulet; drizzle with half melted
butter. Bake, uncovered, 15-20
minutes. 6) Remove from oven. Using
back of spoon, push crust down into
liquid to moisten. Cover with remaining
breadcrumb topping and butter.
7) Preheat broiler. Broil cassoulet,
keeping a close eye on it, 5-7 minutes,
until crust is golden-brown.
Chef’s note on wine pairing: Such
a rich, rustic dish calls for a wine that
has ample body and tannic structure,
such as the famous Château Montus
made from Tannat grapes. Also, in
California’s Livermore Valley, Ridge
produces Mataro, a full-bodied wine
with a gamy aroma.
Manchester also prepares a traditional
cassoulet, with Northern white beans,
housemade Italian sausage and tomato
broth. However, he adds 6 ounces of
grilled wild salmon to the dish. “We charge
$26 for dinner and $18 for lunch, with a
food cost roughly 22% to 25%,” he says.
He believes the great thing about
cassoulet is that you can present it in so
many different versions if you have the
key ingredients: white beans and pork
products (or a different kind of meat). “As
