Duck Cassoulet recipe by Marc Kent paired with Boekenhoutskloof Cabernet Sauvignon.
Ingredients
2 confit duck leg and thigh quarters
3 unsmoked pork rashers, sliced into I-cm-thick pieces
4 shallots (or medium onions), peeled and chopped
3 carrots, roughly chopped
2 leeks. trimmed and chopped
1 stick celery, trimmed and roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
fresh rosemary, thyme and bay leaves
1 pineapple, peeled and cut into chunks
250 ml dried apricot halves
250 ml apricot juice
250 ml Boekenhoutskloof Noble Late Harvest Maldon
salt and coarse pepper
1 x 410 g tin haricot beans (or any other variety), drained and rinsed
Recipe
Serves 4-6
In a large cast-iron casserole ('I use my stove-to-oven Le Creuset'), brown and crisp the duck quarters. Remove from the pot and drain most of the duck fat. De-bone the duck and roughly chop the flesh and skin. Brown the pork rashers in the remaining duck fat until the rind is nicely crisp. Remove from the pot. Sweat the shallots, carrots, leeks, celery and garlic in the pot. Add the fresh rosemary, thyme and a couple of bay leaves. As the carrot softens, add pineapple chunks and apricot halves. Return the duck and pork to the pot. Add the apricot juice and wine. Season.
Simmer over moderate heat for 20 minutes, without the lid. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Add the beans to the pot, mix well and place in the oven with the lid on for 1 hour.
Serve with brown rice or an artisanal loaf of fresh bread ('good for mopping up juices').
Wine Pairing
Boekenhoutskloof Cabernet Sauvignon
'This is a low-fat version of cassoulet, which can normally be quite rich.'