Team Cook December - Parlez-vous français?

[yakima]

Sausage sourced, for better or worse. Breakfast sausage in USA is apparently similar to coarse sausage. Focus on meat flavor, not highly spiced.

Am running into duck fat availability issues. IGA here is out, predicts new product on the 18th. The Wolfert book has a bunch of recipes for both pork and duck confit. So I will use manteca, pork lard, from a local market, since this is predominantly a pork deal.

Ducks are thawing, hope to start confit process in day or two. If I can sort this in the Eastern Washington, USA, hinterlands, so can others.

[Carolyn]

Did you check at WallyWorld for duck fat?

[yakima]

Carolyn, no. I try to avoid both Walmart and Amazon.

[Carolyn]

yakima I don't blame you. I avoid Wally World as much as possible. I get a migraine when I go in there. (and both companies are eeeevil)

[yakima]

Not here, best I can tell.

[yakima]

just bought a whole bunch of manteca, pork lard.

[JCBBQ]

Well Yax it looks like you’ll be the loan finisher this month. Better get some pics this time! yakima

[Panhead John]

lone……🥸

[JCBBQ]

lol. Panhead John My Realtor Brain strikes again. 😂

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

JCBBQ my wife does that from time to time too, y'all work too hard sometimes (shame the social media narrative says otherwise but whatever.. I appreciate what y'all do)

[yakima]

Serendipity strikes! Trimming a bone in ham this morning, for twice smoked ham tonite. Now have lots of skin and fat for the forthcoming (solo) team cook.

[JCBBQ]

lol. We’re all rootin’ for ya, Yax!

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

It's not solo, you got a whole peanut gallery!

[klflowers]

Tell you what SheilaAnn let me know when you are done, I'll show up and take pics and claim I made it.

Seriously though, I can't do it this month, but i am going to try it next month. And I'm going to look at that cookbook. I have the cookbook version of MCS.

[klflowers]

Actually I already have the book in my Kindle library lol

[SheilaAnn]

klflowers the book recommendation comes from yakima

Paula is an acquaintance from my culinary historians club. She used to speak often and is a great story teller. She actually made baking powder sound interesting.

I look forward to your future cassoulet.

[ecowper]

MCBS is a thing …. I ordered this cookbook ….. found it used from a bookseller on Amazon

[yakima]

Update. Currently eviscerating 2 ducks. Will be taking pictures. Using P Wolfert's Traditional Confit of Duck. Will do 4 legs, 4 thighs.

Duck parts in dry brine overnite. Salt, pepper, garlic, thyme, parsley, bay leaf. Freezing carcass parts and breasts, wings. Took 1 picture.

[Panhead John]

Based on past experiences, there won’t be any pics……🥸

[SheilaAnn]

Panhead John yes there will be!

[yakima]

SheilaAnn, your vote of confidence is appreciated, but may be premature.

[yakima]

BD, you better be doing this too!

[SheilaAnn]

Duck fat and Toulouse sourced today. Sourcing will continue over next week. Oh…. I’m making this, y’all!!!

[JCBBQ]

SheilaAnn never doubted you for a second…🤥

[yakima]

So it looks like SheilaAnn and I can go on the road with our Cassoulet Duet!

[JCBBQ]

Yax, here’s a French Bistro playlist to to power you on your solo adventure:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/78zfWTxWUHOTniH7D4dYQA?si=6VoBbCIqSXaBkdMNu7CM9g&p i=GXCG5-8tSx61r

[yakima]

Duck pieces are now heating up slowly in lard, in open dutch oven. Supposed to hold at about 190F for about 2 hours. Took 2 pictures. If I get pics sorted, plan a tranche re confit, then one re cassoulet.

"Tranche" is a wonderful word. Never used it before we became deluged with government tranches.

[58limited]

Any inexpensive online sources for duck leg/ leg quarter confit? Wild Fork does not ship to me anymore and I do not want to buy a whole duck which is all I can find here.

[Panhead John]

David, I’ve got a Wild Fork near me, Costco and HEB. I can get you anything you want. Make a list and I’ll give it to you next month when we meet for lunch.

[SheilaAnn]

58limited I will gladly trade you a pack of confit for a bottle of TDHH!

[58limited]

SheilaAnn Deal! I'm going to be bottling the new Hatch sauce soon.

[yakima]

Duck in lard confit is now done. Tasted a bit of thigh, very tender.
The Wolfert recipe has a lot of detail re long term storage. I am skipping that. Will just keep duck in existing oil in covered dutch oven, outside, until cassoulet prep, about Dec 26.

[yakima]

Turns out that Steve Sando's The Bean Book has a couple of cassoulet recipes, including a smaller simpler one.

[ecowper]

It’s probably Kate Hill’s recipe … Sando and Kate Hill are buddies even though she lives in Gascony not California

[yakima]

picture of duck legs & thighs, rinsed after dry brine.

[yakima]

Holy smoke! it worked.

[JCBBQ]

Alert the media! Nice goin’ kid!

[yakima]

practice

[yakima]

I aint quite got it.
Take pic, email it to myself, import it into photos on iPad, then upload photo to AR.
Dtr and sil have led me thru this a couple of times, but I need repetition.

[yakima]

And should learn how to link multiple photos.

So, team cooks are another example of multi-faceted learning opportunities.

[SheilaAnn]

yakima take the picture WITH the iPad. Edit (crop, color, etc). Save. Come back to the Pit. Upload, insert, post.