Friday, February 10, 2012

Chicken Cassoulet with Potatoes - Gluten Free & Cow's Milk Dairy Free

Chicken Cassoulet is a classic French dish.  Of course I altered it to be gluten free and cow's milk dairy free.  I then took some further liberties with my rift on Chicken Cassoulet.   I think that I kept the essence of the dish with the creamy white beans in a sassy tomato sauce.  Non-traditional potatoes were added to make it heartier and I switched the traditional sausage for bacon.  I also left out the carrots and celery and added bell peppers instead.  Basically, it was a make it work moment in my kitchen as I am desperately in need of a grocery store run.  However, between the snow storm rolling in and some health issues I haven't had a chance to make the 120 mile trek to town.  The moral of the story is feel free to play with this dish as you see fit.

I used a hard goat's milk feta in the bread crumb topping which works in our household with my food allergies.  However, if you can't find this or don't tolerate goat's milk dairy then replace it with about 1/4 cup of a dairy free Parmesan cheese alternative.


Chicken Cassoulet with Potatoes

2 tbs olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" cubes
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp black pepper, divided
1/2 lb bacon, chopped
2 cups onions, chopped
1 cup red/yellow/orange bell pepper, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
heavy pinch red pepper flakes
1 tbs fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 tbs Sriracha hot sauce
5 cups potatoes, cut into 1" cubes
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
2 cans cannellini beans, rinsed
2 tbs corn starch mixed with enough water to make a slurry (optional)
 
Topping
 2 cups fresh gluten free bread crumbs
4 oz hard goat's milk feta cheese OR 1/4 cup dairy free Parmesan Cheese alternative
2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbs olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a large dutch oven, heat the olive oil on high heat.
Season the chicken with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.
Brown the chicken in the olive oil.
Once browned, remove the chicken.
Reduce the heat to medium high.
Add the bacon to the pan.
Once the bacon begins to release its fat add the onions and bell peppers.
Saute until the onions are tender.
Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, thyme, bay leaf, smoked paprika, and parsley.
Saute for about 1 minute.
Add the chicken broth and Sriracha.
Bring to a boil taking care to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the dutch oven.
Remove from the heat and add the browned chicken, potatoes, tomatoes, and cannellini beans.
Stir to combine.
Place in the 350 F oven covered for 1 hour or until the potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through.
If the broth isn't as thick as you desire stir in the corn starch slurry.
While the cassoulet is cooking prepare the topping.
In a food processor process together the fresh bread crumbs, cheese, parsley and olive oil until a coarse sand texture.
Top the cassoulet with the bread crumb mixture.
Place under a broiler for a few minutes until the bread crumbs brown and the cheese is melted.

2 comments:

  1. MMMMM,....What a festive & truly appetizing chicken cassoulet & I so much love that goat's cheese & breadcrumbs topping!

    Yummie inded! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Sophie! It is such a wonderful hearty dish.

    ReplyDelete

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