Cassoulet is a rich, slow-cooked stew originating in southern France. The food writer Elizabeth David described it as “that sumptuous amalgamation of haricot beans, sausage, pork, mutton and preserved goose, aromatically spiced with garlic and herbs”. It originated in the town of Castelnaudary in the Audedepartment in the Occitanieregion. Variants of the dish are local to other towns and cities in the Aude.
According to tradition, cassoulet was invented in 1355 in the town of Castelnaudary, under siege by the English during the Hundred Years’ War. In medieval times the dish was referred to as an estouffet. The Dictionnaire de l’Académie française dates the term cassoulet to no earlier than the 19th century. The current name is a diminutive of the Languedoccassolo – a cooking pot – according to the Dictionnaire de l’Académie française; Elizabeth David states that it comes from “Cassol d’Issel”, the original clay baking pot made in the small town of Issel, near Castelnaudary. In cassoulets, the haricot bean is now always the principal ingredient. In the medieval period, broad beans (favolles), fresh or dried, were used in stews of the cassoulet type. Sources differ on when haricots were first used instead of favolles: the Oxford Companion to Food states that haricots arrived in France via Spain from the New World in the 16th century; according to Larousse Gastronomique they were not used in France until the 19th century.
Traditionally, the dish is cooked in an earthenware pot, which Jane Grigson notes is correctly called a cassole or toupin; she adds that any earthenware or stoneware casserole will do, “provided it is deep and wide”. The authors of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle and Julia Child, write, “The composition of a cassoulet is, in typical French fashion, the subject of infinite dispute … arguments about what should go into this famous dish seem based on local traditions”. Although haricot beans are common to all varieties, the meats vary considerably. The Michelin Guide comments that every town brings its own personal touch to the recipe, all claiming the title of the one and only stronghold of authentic cassoulet.
In 1970, La Grande confrérie du cassoulet de Castelnaudary – The Grand Brotherhood of the Cassoulet of Castelnaudary – was established to increase the prestige and spread and defend the traditions and quality of cassoulet. Together with the town council and other bodies, the confrérie set up the Fête du Cassoulet in 2000, a three-day annual festival celebrating cassoulet, offering tastings along with free concerts, a flower parade and other attractions.
