×
Donal Skehan
Irish Sausage & White Bean Cassoulet with Herby Garlic Crumbs | DonalSkehan.com
  • recipes

Irish Sausage & White Bean Cassoulet with Herby Garlic Crumbs

September 13

This Irish Sausage & White Bean Cassoulet is a comforting, one-pot twist on the French classic—hearty, rustic, and packed with layered flavour. Good quality sausages are key here, infused with rosemary, fennel, and white wine, then nestled into a creamy bed of beans, sweet vegetables, and cabbage. The final touch of crispy, herby, garlic crumb adds texture and brightness, making each bite deeply satisfying.

  • serves Serves 4
  • time 45 mins

Method

  1. 1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F/Gas Mark 6
  2. 2. Set a wide, shallow casserole dish with a lid over a medium heat and add the butter and oil. Add the sausages and brown evenly on all sides for a few minutes then remove from the pan and set aside.
  3. 3. Add the fennel seeds, rosemary leaves, finely chopped onion, carrot and celery, along with some salt and pepper and cook for 5 - 7 minutes until the vegetables are tender and sweet. Add the sliced garlic and cook for a couple of minutes then add the white wine and allow everything to bubble away for a couple of minutes.
  4. 4. Stir through the Dijon, and add the stock cube then drain 1 tin of beans and add the the pan, pour the second tin directly into the pan, along with the liquid from the tin and stir to combine everything. Stir through the torn cabbage and double cream then place the sausages on top of the cassoulet and place the lid on top and place into the oven to cook for 20 - 25 minutes until the sausages are cooked through and the cassoulet is piping hot throughout.
  5. 5. Whilst the cassoulet cooks, place the bread into a blender and pulse until you have a coarse crumb with some large and some smaller bits.
  6. 6. Put the 75g butter into a large frying pan and let it melt then add the rosemary, garlic and crumbs and stir everything together to combine. Continue to cook, stirring, until the crumbs are golden and crisp and the garlic is fragrant then remove from the heat and stir through the parsley.
  7. 7. Serve with crumbs scattered on top of the cassoulet and serve in big bowls with plenty of freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil to finish.

Ingredients

8 good quality sausages

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon fennel seeds, crushed

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves only

1 medium onion, finely diced

1 medium carrot, peeled and finely diced

1 celery stalk, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, finely sliced

⅔ cup dry white wine

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 chicken stock cube

2 cans (15 oz each) cannellini beans, drained

⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon heavy cream

½ head sweetheart cabbage (substitute with Napa or pointed cabbage if unavailable), tough stem removed, roughly chopped

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the Crumbs:

About 3 cups sourdough bread, torn

5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon unsalted butter

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves only

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Small handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (about 2 tablespoons)

8 good quality sausages

25g butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fennel seeds, crushed

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves only

1 onion, finely diced

1 carrot, peeled and finely diced

1 stick celery, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, finely sliced

150ml white wine

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 chicken stock cube

2 x 400g tins cannellini beans, drained

100ml double cream

½ head sweetheart cabbage, tough stem removed, roughly chopped

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

For the crumbs:

200g sourdough

75g butter

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves only

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Small handful flat leaf parsley, finely chopped