Pork Cassoulet With Pork Confit And Winter Tomato Sauce Recipes

PORK CASSOULET WITH PORK CONFIT AND WINTER TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add beans. Boil 3 minutes. Remove pot from heat, cover, and let stand 1 hour. Drain; return beans to pot. Using kitchen string, tie parsley, thyme, and bay leaves in double layer of cheesecloth; add to pot. Add remaining 4 quarts water, pancetta, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper to beans; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer over medium-low heat until beans are just tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
• Drain beans, reserving 2 cups cooking liquid. Discard herb bundle, onion, and garlic. Transfer pancetta to work surface (reserve pancetta for wine sauce).
• Heat olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions to pot and sauté until tender and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add wine; boil until liquid is reduced by half, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Add reserved juices from confit. Bring to boil; reduce heat to medium and simmer 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cut reserved pancetta into 1/2-inch cubes. Heat heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat; add pancetta and sauté until beginning to turn brown and crisp, about 4 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to wine sauce. Add Winter Tomato Sauce to pot; season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat 2 heavy large skillets over medium heat. Divide sausages among skillets; cover and cook until brown and cooked through, turning occasionally, about 20 minutes. Transfer sausages to work surface. Cool slightly, then cut into 2-inch pieces.
• Spoon 1/3 of beans (about 4 cups) into 8-quart ovenproof pot, spreading in even layer. Arrange half of confit and half of sausages over beans. Pour 1/3 of wine sauce (about 2 1/3 cups) over meat. Spoon half of remaining beans (about 4 cups) over sauce. Arrange remaining confit and sausages over beans. Pour half of remaining sauce over meat (about 2 1/3 cups). Spoon remaining beans over sauce, then pour remaining sauce over beans. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover cassoulet and reserved cooking liquid separately and chill. Let stand at room temperature 2 hours before continuing.) Drizzle enough reserved bean cooking liquid over beans to barely submerge if needed. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over. Drizzle breadcrumbs with olive oil.
• Bake cassoulet uncovered until bubbling around edges and crumbs are beginning to brown, about 1 hour.
• Emergo beans can be purchased through chefshop.com, and heirloom French horticultural beans can be purchased through beanbag.net. If you can't find them, Great Northern beans or cannellini (white kidney beans) will also work.

PORK CASSOULET

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
• 2. Place the spareribs in a heavy pot with half the onion, half the minced garlic, and the thyme sprigs.
• 3. Cover with a lid or foil and bake for 1 1/2 hours.
• 4. Remove the ribs; set aside.
• 5. In the same pot, over medium heat, brown the bacon.
• 6. Remove all but about 2 tablespoons of the fat and add the celery, carrot, salt, pepper, thyme leaves, and the remaining onion and garlic (minced and whole) and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
• 7. Add the broth, wine, tomatoes, bay leaves, and beans. Bring to a simmer, then add the cooked ribs.
• 8. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the olive oil, bread crumbs, and parsley.
• 9. Sprinkle the bread-crumb mixture over the cassoulet and bake for 1 hour, uncovered, occasionally pressing the bread crumbs into the cassoulet to thicken it.
• 10. Let cool and serve.

CASSOULET

Steps:

• The night before cooking, marinate the meat and soak the beans. For meat: In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except fat and toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate overnight. For beans: In a large bowl, combine beans, 1 teaspoon salt and enough cold water to cover by 4 inches. Cover and let sit overnight.
• The next day, roast the meat: Heat oven to 325 degrees. Pour fat over meat in the bowl and toss to coat. Spread meat in one even layer on a rimmed baking sheet, leaving space between each piece to encourage browning (use two pans if necessary). Top meat with any fat left in bowl. Roast until browned, about 1 hour, then turn pieces, cover with foil, and continue to roast until soft, another 1 1/2 hours. Remove meat from baking sheet, then scrape up all browned bits stuck to the pan. Reserve fat and browned bits.
• Meanwhile, cook the beans: Drain beans, add them to a large stockpot and cover with 2 inches water. Add bouquet garni, celery, carrot, 2 garlic cloves, 2 teaspoons salt and the pepper. Stick whole clove into the folds of the onion half and add that as well. Bring to a boil and then simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until beans are cooked through, 1 to 1 1/2 hours, adding garlic sausage after 30 minutes. When beans are cooked, remove bouquet garni and aromatics, including vegetables. Reserving cooking liquid, drain the beans and sausage.
• While beans are cooking, bring a medium pot of water to a boil and add salt pork. Simmer for 30 minutes, remove and let cool. Cut off skin, then slice pork into very thin pieces and reserve.
• Heat a very large skillet (at least 12 inches) over medium heat and add a drizzle of duck or other fat. Add fresh pork sausages and cook until well browned on all sides, about 20 minutes. Remove to a plate and reserve, leaving any sausage fat in skillet.
• In same skillet over medium-high heat, add 1/4 cup of the reserved fat and the browned bits from the roasted meat. Add diced onions, carrots and celery, and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add 9 whole garlic cloves and cook until fragrant, another 2 to 4 minutes. Add tomato purée, season with salt to taste, and simmer until thickened to a saucelike consistency, 5 to 10 minutes, if necessary. Add cooked beans and stir to combine. Remove from heat and reserve.
• Assemble the cassoulet: Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large Dutch oven, lay salt pork pieces in an even layer to cover the bottom of the pot. Add a scant third of the bean and garlic sausage mixture, spreading evenly. Top with half of the roasted meat pieces, 2 pork sausages and 2 duck legs. Add another scant third of the bean mixture, and top with remaining meat, sausages and duck legs. Top with remaining beans, spreading them to the edges and covering all meat. Pour reserved bean liquid along the edges of the pot, until liquid comes up to the top layer of beans but does not cover. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top and drizzle with 1/4 cup duck fat.
• Bake until crust is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Use a large spoon to lightly crack the crust; the bean liquid will bubble up. Use the spoon to drizzle the bean liquid all over the top of the crust. Return to oven and bake 1 hour more, cracking the crust and drizzling with the bean liquid every 20 minutes, until the crust is well browned and liquid is bubbling. (The total baking time should be 1 1/2 hours.) Remove from oven and let cool slightly, then serve.

SHORTCUT PORK CASSOULET

Steps:

• Place beans in large saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover by 3 inches. Bring to boil. Remove from heat. Cover and soak beans 1 hour. Drain.
• Return beans to pan. Add enough cold water to cover beans by 3 inches. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat until beans are almost tender, about 30 minutes. Drain.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 300°F. Cook bacon in heavy large ovenproof pot over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to large bowl. Discard all but 2 tablespoons drippings from pot. Increase heat to medium-high. Working in batches, cook pork shoulder and kielbasa in pot until brown, about 8 minutes per batch. Using slotted spoon, transfer pork and kielbasa to bowl with bacon.
• Add onions, celery and carrots to pot. Sauté until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and thyme; sauté 1 minute. Mix in broth, tomatoes with juices and tomato paste; bring to boil. Stir in meats from bowl, then drained beans. Return to boil. Cover pot. Transfer to oven; bake until pork is tender, about 1 hour. Maintain oven temperature.
• Using slotted spoon, transfer 1 cup beans and vegetables from pot to processor and purée. Return purée to pot. Stir in wine. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Refrigerate uncovered until cool, then cover and refrigerate. Bring cassoulet to simmer before continuing.)
• Smooth top of cassoulet. Mix breadcrumbs, Parmesan and oil in bowl. Sprinkle half of crumb mixture over cassoulet. Arrange bell pepper atop crumb mixture. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake cassoulet uncovered until pork and beans are very tender and topping is golden and crisp, about 45 minutes.
• Garnish cassoulet with parsley.

CASSOULET IN THE STYLE OF TOULOUSE (CASSOULET DE TOULOUSE)

Steps:

• Two days in advance, season the pork shoulder, fresh ham hock or pig's knuckles, and the pork skin moderately with salt and pepper. Place in an earthenware or glass dish, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Soak the beans overnight in enough water to cover by at least 2 inches.
• The following day, simmer the pork skin in water to cover until it is supple, 10 to 20 minutes. Drain, roll up the strip, and tie it with string.
• Dry the cubes of pork shoulder with paper towels. In an 8- or 9-quart flameproof casserole, heat the duck fat over moderately high heat. Add the pork shoulder and lightly brown on all sides. Add the onions and carrots and sauté, stirring, until the onions are soft and golden, about 5 minutes. Add the ham hock or pig's knuckles and the whole piece of ventrèche or pancetta. Allow these meats to brown a little around the edges, turning the pieces occasionally. Add the whole head of garlic, and the tomato or tomato paste; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the stock, bundle of pork skin, and herb bouquet. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer the ragout for 1 1/2 hours.
• When the ragout has cooked for l hour, drain the beans and put them into a large saucepan, cover with fresh water, and slowly bring to a boil. Skim, and simmer for a few minutes, then drain and immediately add the beans to the simmering ragout. Continue simmering for up to 2 hours, or until the beans are tender. (You can tell when the beans are done by removing one or two beans with a spoon and blowing on them-the skins will burst.) Let cool, then skim off all the fat that has risen to the top; reserve 2 tablespoons of this fat for finishing the cassoulet. Cover the pork ragout and beans and refrigerate overnight to develop the flavors.
• The next day, steam the duck confit for 10 minutes to soften. As soon as the meat is cool enough to handle, pull it off the bones in large chunks.
• Remove the ragout and beans from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Pick out the ham hock or pig's knuckles, pancetta, garlic head, and herb bouquet. Cut the meat from the ham hock or pig's knuckles into bite-size pieces, discarding bones and fatty parts. Cut the pancetta into 1-inch pieces, discarding the extraneous fat. Set all the meats aside. Press on the garlic to extract the pulp and set aside. Discard the garlic skins and herb bouquet.
• In a food processor or electric blender, puree the pork fat or salt pork with the cooked and raw garlic and 1 cup water. Add this garlic puree to the ragout and beans and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat. Fold reserved meats into the ragout and beans.
• Preheat the oven to 325°F. To assemble the cassoulet, remove the roll of pork skin from the ragout. Untie, cut the skin into 2-inch pieces, and use to line a 5 1/2- or 6-quart ovenproof casserole, preferably earthenware, and fat side down-the skin side sticks (see Note below). Using a large slotted spoon or skimmer, add one half of the beans and pork shoulder. Scatter the duck confit on top of the pork and beans. Cover with the remaining beans and pork ragout. Taste the ragout cooking liquid and adjust the seasoning; there will probably be no need for salt. Pour just enough of the ragout liquid over the beans to cover them. Be sure there is at least 1 inch of "growing space" between the beans and the rim of the dish. Drizzle with the 2 tablespoons fat reserved in Step 4. Place the casserole in the oven and let cook for 1 1/2 hours.
• Prick the sausages and brown them under a hot broiler or in a skillet. Drain; cut larger sausages into 3- or 4-inch pieces.
• Reduce the oven heat to 275°F. Gently stir up the skin that has formed on the beans. Place the sausages on top of the beans. Dust the bread crumbs on top of the beans and sausage. Bake the cassoulet for 1 more hour. The top crust should become a beautiful golden brown; if it isn't, turn on the broiler and carefully "toast" the top layer of beans, about 2 minutes. Transfer the cassoulet from the oven to a cloth-lined surface and let it rest 20 minutes. Drizzle with the walnut oil just before serving.