(Non-contractual image / source: Jacklee)
The origins of Cassoulet date back to the Middle Ages. Since the 14th century, it can be found in the famous Viandier of Taillevent. Legend has it that Cassoulet is a very popular main course that would have been invented during the siege of Castelnaudary by the English, during the Hundred Years’ War.
Threatened by famine, the inhabitants gathered everything they had in reserve to feed the soldiers of the city. Bacon, pork, beans, sausage and meat were simmered in a large earthenware pot. Thanks to this meal, the soldiers of Castelnaudary regained their strength and managed to drive the English out of the Lauragais and even to the shores of the English Channel. Nowadays, the broad beans have since been replaced by beans, and Cassoulet is only served in its atypical container, the Cassole.
Much later, in 1929, the famous Carcassonne chef Prosper Montagné recognised the supremacy of Cassoulet de Castelnaudary in his book “Le Festin Occitan: Le Cassoulet est le Dieu de la cuisine occitane”. He even added that the Cassoulet is a God in three persons; the Father is the Cassoulet de Castelnaudary, the Son is designated by that of Carcassonne and the Holy Spirit by that of Toulouse.
To succeed in making a good Cassoulet, it is essential to cook it slowly in a gentle oven. It is also necessary to break the crust several times. Some even say that by breaking the crust 7 times, you are sure to enjoy an excellent Cassoulet.
The recipe for Cassoulet: Castelnaudary, Carcassonne or Toulouse
The Cassoulet de Castelnaudary appears to be the base recipe. For the ingredients, you will find lingot beans as well as various pieces of pork and poultry such as Confit, pork collar, belly, pork rinds and pork knuckles.
The Toulouse Cassoulet is more complicated. It is made up of lamb and mutton, then you must wait until the end of cooking before adding the dry sausage with rind and the Confit duck.
For the Toulouse version, you must also cover the Cassoulet with Toulouse sausages before placing it in the oven.
The pottery of the Not brothers
Famous for its culinary pottery, Not pottery is renowned for its celebrated cassole, the essential vessel for making a true Cassoulet. In this unique place in France, the cassole is hand-thrown on pottery wheels dating from 1830 ! It is located on the Canal du Midi near the Mediterranean locks in the beautiful countryside near Castelnaudary. More precisely, in the small village of Lauragais, Mas-Saintes-Puelles.
The members of the Not family have been potters for three generations, from father to son. Everything is made by hand in this traditional pottery workshop. The brothers’ craftsmanship is significant. They master all the fairly complicated production processes: throwing, glazing by dipping and ladling, with fairly limited colours (white, blue, green, yellow and natural) in order to respect
