Post by Ella
Dinner last night (Thursday) was cassoulet. It’s a big thing here in Carcassonne. Every restaurant menu has at least one cassoulet on its menu.
I might have mentioned before, a cassoulet is a rich, slow cooked stew. A medley of meats (sausage, mutton, pork and goose are the classic combo) and haricot beans with garlic and herbs. Originally invented in the 1300’s in Castelnaudery, a town about 40km from Carcassonne while the town was under siege by the British.
You can buy tins of cassoulet. Open, dump into pot, heat, serve.
We ambled to Comte Roger’s as dark was falling. We had booked a table for 7pm. A beautiful full moon was rising. Gargoyles were at the ready.
I started with a bowl of root vegetable soup and felt pleased with myself for being healthy. Grubb started with tataki duck. “Oh man it was the best! It was exquisite. It was transformative” says Grubb.
We both had the home made cassoulet as our main course. The waiter did a formal “presentation”. He set a large plate in front of me and a steaming hot bowl cassoulet to the side. He clumsily (maybe he was new?) fished out each small chunk of meat, named it and slid it onto my plate. Then added a spoonful of the beans. Finally, from a separate dressing bottle, poured the house specialty next to the beans. It looked like red wine vinegar but tasted like soured red wine.
Personally, I wasn’t in love with the cassoulet. It was okay. Grubb thought it was good but the one he had in Paris was thicker and richer.
Tataki duck looked delicious… but it isn’t French.
Yes, it is a Japanese preparation of the meat but I think the French have made it their own. It has appeared on many a menu.