Braised White Bean & Andouille Sausage Cassoulet

Braised White Bean & Andouille Sausage Cassoulet

Braised White Bean & Andouille Sausage Cassoulet is hands down one of my favorite recipes to cook in the whole wide world.

For this riff on the classic French dish cassoulet, I slowly braise white beans with spicy andouille sausage in the oven for 2 to 3 hours, finishing it off with a topping of breadcrumbs. I used Saag's Ragin' Cajun Sausage from their Naturals line, which are wonderfully spicy and flavorful. For you non-red meat eaters out there, the sausages are made from smoked chicken and turkey. They worked perfectly.

This dish is the ultimate comfort food--rich and meaty. I also love serving it family style for a dinner party, placing the braising dish right in the middle of the table and letting my guests go at it. I promise there will very little left. While the cooking time is on the longer side (2-3 hours), the "active" part is relatively short.

Serve with Butter Lettuce Salad with Feta & Pomegranates and crusty French bread for scooping up cassoulet

Braised White Bean & Andouille Sausage Cassoulet
Serves 4-6 people
Cooking time: about 2-3 hours
Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 package of Saag's Ragin' Cajun sausage (4 links) or other andouille sausage, chopped
• 1 cup cannellini beans, soaked overnight or for six hours (to soak, cover with two inches of water in a bowl)
• 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 5 cups water (preferably filtered)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 bouquet garni of bay leaf, thyme, and parsley tied together with kitchen twine
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
• salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a braising pan with a tight-fitting lid, heat the grapeseed oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrots, stirring occasionally until lightly caramelized (about 10 minutes). 
3. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
4. Add cannellini beans, sausages, water, tomato paste, bouquet garni, and a pinch or two of salt and some pepper. Stir to combine. 
5. Cover with the lid and bake in the oven for 90 minutes to 2 hours, or until the beans are becoming tender.
6. Meanwhile, toss the breadcrumbs with the olive oil, parsley, salt, and pepper.
7. Remove the cassoulet from the oven and check seasoning (salt and pepper). Top with the breadcrumb mixture and bake uncovered for another 30 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Serve family style. Enjoy!

Source for Ingredients

• Ragin' Cajun sausages from Saag's
• Bob's Red Mill cannellini beans from Whole Foods
• grapeseed oil and organic tomato paste from Trader Joe's
• onion, carrot, cellery, thyme, parsley, and bay leaf from WeHo Farmers Market

Disclosure: Saag's sent me free product samples and is sponsoring me to attend Camp Blogaway later this month.