Ingredients

• ½ tsp sunflower oil
• 6 sausages
• at least 85% meat
• 4 celery sticks
• 3 carrots
• 2 onions
• halved and sliced
• 6 boneless
• skinless chicken thighs (about 450g/1lb)
• 2 garlic cloves
• crushed
• 200g/7oz piece smoked lean gammon
• trimmed and cut into 2cm/1in cubes
• 2 x 400g/14oz cans chopped tomatoes
• 150ml/5fl oz red wine (or water)
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 4-5 bushy sprigs fresh thyme
• 400g/14oz can cannellini beans in water
• drained and rinsed
• 400g/14oz can butter beans in water
• drained and rinsed
• freshly ground black pepper
• handful fresh flatleaf parsley
• ½ large orange
• zest only
• finely grated

Directions

• Brush a large non-stick frying pan with the sunflower oil
• using the tip of a pastry brush. Add the sausages to the pan and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes
• turning every now and then until nicely browned on all sides.
• Meanwhile
• trim the celery and peel the carrots and cut them into diagonal slices about 1.5cm/½in thick.
• Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
• Add the onions to the frying pan and cook with the sausages for 6-8 minutes
• stirring regularly until softened and lightly browned.
• Trim the chicken thighs of any visible fat - we find a good pair of kitchen scissors does the job well - then cut the thighs in half.
• Add the garlic and chicken pieces to the pan with the sausages and onions and cook for 3-4 minutes
• turning the chicken twice until coloured all over.
• Transfer everything to a large flameproof casserole dish.
• Stir in the gammon
• celery
• carrots
• tomatoes
• red wine and 300ml/½ pint cold water
• then sprinkle over the caster sugar and chilli flakes. Stir in the bay leaf and thyme and season with lots of ground black pepper.
• Bring the cassoulet to a simmer on the hob
• then cover with a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook for 45 minutes.
• Take the casserole out of the oven and stir in all the beans. Cover with the lid again and put the dish back in the oven for another 30 minutes.
• Just before the cassoulet is ready
• prepare the garnish. Chop the parsley roughly and toss with the orange zest in a small bowl.
• Serve large portions of the cassoulet in deep plates or wide bowls with a good sprinkling of the zesty parsley garnish on each one.