Celebrate National Cassoulet Day Every Year on January 9
Background image by Alpha @ Flickr
Cassoulet is a slow-cooked beans and meat dish that’s perfect for a cold winter day. So assuming January is winter where you live, that makes National Cassoulet Day the perfect time to enjoy it.
Of course, you may need to plan ahead if you’re going to make it yourself. It takes a bit of time.
We haven’t been able to discover who decided to commemorate this day with a dish. Or when or why.
The dish itself is from France, supposedly invented in the town of Castelnaudary.
But its French origin is about the only thing about cassoulet that most people seem to agree on.
Oh, and beans. Beans must be the main ingredient. Although there’s less agreement on the kind of beans.
As for the meat, well, depending on the area of France, cooks may include anything from partridge to mutton, pork loin, sausage or goose.
Want to learn a bit more about this dish? Check out this New Yorker article.
Scroll down for some ideas on celebrating this deliciously unofficial holiday.
Celebration Ideas for National Cassoulet Day
Every year New York City hosts a week-long celebration with dozens of restaurants offering a variety of cassoulet dishes for diners to enjoy. If you happen to live there, consider checking out one (or more).
If you don’t live there, or can’t make it to one of the celebrating restaurants, you can still celebrate this hearty dish.
Individuals
Clearly you must enjoy some cassoulet.
You can buy cassoulet in cans or jars.
You can also buy cassoulet kits.
Or you can try making it completely from scratch. We found these recipes that look interesting:
Some of these are more labor-intensive than others (and probably also closer to authentic, although we can’t be sure). The Winter Cassoulet from Real Simple looks, well, pretty simple (at least compared to others)! Especially if you’re short on time (but it still takes more than an hour).
Companies
OK, admitedly we can’t come up with too many ways for businesses to celebrate this day.
Grocers can certainly create a display with common ingredients needed to make this dish. Maybe even give away printed recipes and a shopping list to help cooks ensure they have everything they need.
For restaurants, celebrating this day only makes sense if you either already have cassoulet on your menu or can easily add it as a special for a short time around Cassoulet Day.
Do you have any other ideas for celebrating National Cassoulet Day? Share!
[…] National Cassoulet Day: Celebrate with a hearty dish of beans & meat. Go out for cassoulet, or make it yourself (but plan ahead to have enough time if you’re making it!). […]
[…] National Cassoulet Day: Simmer a big pot of the meat & beans dish called cassoulet. Your home will smell amazing, and you’ll have a delicious dinner waiting whenever you’re ready. What could be more perfect for a winter evening? […]
[…] National Cassoulet Day: For this day we slow-cook beans & meat to create a delightful French dish called cassoulet. If you have time, give it a try! Or find a restaurant that serves it, and treat yourself for your Sunday evening. […]