What French dish is a casserole of white beans, sausages, and duck?

The French dish made as a casserole of white beans, sausages, and duck is cassoulet.

Cassoulet is a rich, slow-cooked specialty of southern France, especially associated with Castelnaudary in the Occitanie region. Its name comes from the cassole, the deep earthenware pot traditionally used to cook it. The dish combines white haricot beans with meats such as pork, sausages, duck, goose, lamb, or mutton.

The exact recipe depends on the town. Castelnaudary versions often emphasize pork and sausage, Toulouse cassoulet includes Toulouse sausage and may contain duck or goose, and Carcassonne versions can include mutton or partridge. Because of these regional traditions, French cooks have long debated what counts as an authentic cassoulet.

A common mix-up is treating cassoulet as simply baked beans. The beans are central, but the slow cooking, meat, stock, herbs, and often a browned surface crust give it its distinctive character. A popular legend says it was created during the 1355 siege of Castelnaudary, though the modern name and recipe developed later.