Recipe: Cassoulet

Cassoulet. Photo / Kellie Blizard

It is presumptuous to name this dish after the classic French preparation that can take three days to make. However, this rapid-fire version tips its hat to the original.

1 Dice one large onion and chop three cloves of garlic. Cook these together until soft in a quarter cup of olive oil:

2 Add a diced carrot, if you have it, 100g of bacon cut into large pieces, some cavolo nero or cale leaves if you have them in the garden. Cook until the bacon is beginning to crisp.

3 Add: 1 420g can of cannellini beans and their liquid. 1 small can of tomatoes or 3 fresh chopped tomatoes.

4 Season well with salt and pepper. Add a bay leaf if you have one, or some thyme sprigs. Transfer this to a casserole dish. Top up with stock or water to just cover the contents.

5 Pulse 4 stale bread slices to make coarse crumbs. Add a 2 tablespoons of olive oil and pulse again.

6 Mound this over the top of the casserole contents and bake for 1 hour in a medium oven. The top should form a crust with the liquids starting to bubble up through.

Scatter with chopped parsley, serve with crusty bread and a glass of red.

If you happen to have good sausages, fresh chicken drumsticks or thighs, diced pork or even duck confit in your fridge, any or all of these can be added at the stage you add the bacon.