Duck and Sausage Cassoulet

This hearty dish is deliciously versatile. Serve as a stew once you’ve stirred the duck back in (reheating on the hob first briefly, if needed) or, as is more traditional, baked with a crispy breadcrumb topping.

Hands-on time 30min, plus cooling. Cooking time about 2hr 15min. Serves 6

 4 duck legs

 2tsp olive oil

 6 chunky pork sausages

 100g smoked bacon lardons

 1 onion, finely chopped

 1 carrot, finely chopped

 1 celery stick, finely chopped

 4 garlic cloves, crushed

 4 ripe plum tomatoes, about 400g, roughly chopped

 Handful thyme sprigs, leaves picked  2 bay leaves

 500ml chicken stock

 2 x 400g tins haricot beans, drained and rinsed

FOR THE CRUMB

 50g fresh or dried breadcrumbs  1 garlic clove, crushed  Handful parsley, finely chopped

1 Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Pat duck legs dry with kitchen paper, season all over and arrange on a wire rack set over a roasting tin. Roast for 1hr 30min, or until the meat is pulling away from the bones. Cool (reserve the fat in the roasting tin).

2 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large casserole dish (that has a lid) over medium heat. Brown the sausages

all over. Remove to a plate. Add lardons, onion, carrot and celery to the casserole and cook for 8-10min, until softened and starting to brown. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2min, until fragrant.

3 Stir in the tomatoes, thyme, bay leaves, stock and some seasoning. Bring to the boil, then return sausages to the casserole. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 1hr, removing the lid for the final 15min.

4 Chunkily shred the duck meat and skin from the bones, discarding any fatty bits. Stir shredded duck into the casserole, along with the beans. Check seasoning.

5 In a small bowl mix breadcrumbs with the garlic, parsley, 2tbsp of the reserved duck fat, and some seasoning.

6 Sprinkle crumb mixture over casserole in an even layer and cook in the oven, uncovered, for 45min, or until bubbling and golden brown. Serve with some cooked greens.

PER SERVING 716cals, 54g protein, 42g fat (14g saturates), 26g carbs (6g total sugars), 9g fibre

FREEZE AHEAD Prepare to end of step 5. Cool, then freeze cassoulet mixture and breadcrumbs separately for up to 3 months. To serve, defrost in fridge, then return cassoulet to a casserole dish. Reheat on hob for 10min, adding a splash of water if needed. Complete recipe to serve.