Apparently - “The history of cassoulet is a history of Languedoc. One legend places the birth of cassoulet during the siege of Castelnaudary by the Black Prince, Edward the Prince of Wales, in 1355. The besieged townspeople gathered their remaining food to create a big stew cooked in a cauldron.”

Well at this time of the month this seems more than appropriate for us. It’s certainly not going to be traditional – but by definition it is a Bean Stew with leftovers!

Ingredients:-

75g of each Rosecoco, Mung and Black Eyed Beans
1 large Onion, roughly cut into 8
2 Clove of Garlic, sliced
2 Stock Cubes
1 Tin Chopped Tomatoes
4 Rashers of Bacon
2 tsp dried Thyme
2 tsp Chilli Flakes
2 tsp Mixed Herbs
8 Inch fresh Fennel stem, cut into 1” lengths
Dried Porcine Mushrooms
2 Pork loin steak, cut into chunks
Salt & Pepper

Method:-

(1) Soak your Beans over night in lots of water.
(2) Drain and rinse the Beans and transfer with fresh salted water to a large pan.
(3) Cut the Bacon into good sized strips and fry until crispy. Set aside.
(4) Bring the Beans to the boil and then simmer for 20 minutes.
(5) Dissolve the Stock cubes in a pint of boiling water.
(6) Add all the ingredients except your bean to your slow cooker.
(7) Drain the Beans and add to the slow cooker. Top up with sufficient hot water for everything to be covered.
(8) Cook on high for 4 hours, stirring gently on occasions.
(9) Taste and add Salt & Pepper to taste.
(10) Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook for a further 4 hours.

Served with a few fresh herbs over the top to brighten it up and some warm home made Ciabatta this was well worth the time. Ingredients wise it probably cost us less than £3 in total and there are at least 6 hearty portions.