Quick Cassoulet in a Cast Iron Skillet

Votes: 1

Time: 1 hour 10 min.
Complexity: easily
Servings: 4

This recipe is a simplified version of the French cassoulet stew, which can take up to half a day to prepare. Traditionally, cassoulet consists of several ingredients—beans, sausage, poultry, bacon, and vegetables—all cooked separately and then combined in a single pan. But with this recipe, you can cook everything in a single cast-iron skillet, ensuring an authentic-tasting dish without the need for a mountain of additional cookware, and, best of all, the entire process takes just an hour. Everything is seared in the cast-iron skillet, the stew is simmered in the same skillet on the stovetop, baked in the oven, and then served in the same skillet.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

3 tbsp. l. olive oil
4 chicken thighs with skin and bones
2 x 400g cans of white beans, liquid
110g unsmoked bacon (piece), such as pancetta, cut into 1cm cubes.
1 medium carrot, finely chopped (about 0.5 cup)
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
4 cloves of garlic
220 g raw garlic sausages (about 2 pcs.), unsmoked Polish sausage or bratwurst
0.5 cups plain breadcrumbs
1 cup lightly salted chicken broth
5 sprigs of thyme + 1 tsp chopped leaves
2 bay leaves

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

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Recipes with similar ingredients: chicken thighs, white beans, bacon, carrot, onions, garlic, kupaty (fried sausages), breadcrumbs, bouillon, thyme, bay leaf

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

Place the rack on the highest shelf of the oven and preheat to 200°C.
In a 12-inch cast-iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Season the chicken thighs with salt and black pepper and add them skin-side down; immediately reduce the heat to medium. Cook, without turning, until the skin releases fat, is golden brown and crisp, and pulls easily from the pan, about 12 minutes.

Move the thighs to the far edge of the pan, pressing them against the sides to allow the vegetables to cook. Add the carrots, onion, 2 cloves of garlic, and pancetta and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are soft and translucent, about 6 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs.
Set aside 1/2 cup of beans and mash with a fork to form a chunky paste. Add the remaining beans, chicken broth, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf to the skillet and season with pepper. Then stir in the mashed beans. Place the sausages and chicken pieces into the bean mixture, placing the chicken skin side up. Bring to a simmer, transfer the skillet to the oven, and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick, bubbly, and crusty, about 30 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven and preheat the oven to grill mode.
Grate the remaining 2 garlic cloves and toss in a medium bowl with the remaining breadcrumbs and chopped thyme. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss with a fork to coat the crumbs evenly. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs evenly over the cassoulet and cook until the topping is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling and crusty, about 5 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through to ensure even browning. Serve the cassoulet from the pan.

Note

Grill temperatures can vary from oven to oven, so keep a close eye on the pan. A few extra seconds and the cassoulet could burn.