Programme six In the sixth episode of French Odyssey, Rick Stein stopped off at Toulouse to sample the famous sausages before heading downstream to create his perfect cassoulet.

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Cooking cassoulet Recipes from French Odyssey

Recipes from French Odyssey Details of Rick's journey

Programme six

Rick Stein indulged his passion for hearty fare in this programme with a visit to Toulouse market in search of the famous Toulouse sausage. He was seriously impressed with the abundance of fresh, whole fish on sale at the market and sampled some of the region's most quaffable wine.

But it was his quest to discover the definitive cassoulet that caused him to loosen his belt a notch or two. Mr. Stein admitted he sampled up to two servings of cassoulet a day, in different restaurants, to try and solve the mystery of what should and shouldn't go into making this notoriously substantial dish.

"It's essential to drink lots of red wine with cassoulet because it's so fatty it glues your mouth together!" advised Rick.

Cassoulet is not a dish for the faint-hearted and a good appetite is an essential ingredient for the enjoyment of this dish. The debate rages as to what traditionally makes up cassoulet, whose name comes from the earthenware bowl in which it is cooked.

Broadly speaking the dish should consist of haricot beans, goose or duck fat, plenty of garlic and a selection of meat such as confit duck and goose, Toulouse sausage, pork and even mutton. Once cooked the cassoulet is often sealed in jars and preserved.

Rick discovered that trying to understand cassoulet is 'impossible' and says: "For me it's like trying to understand the Common Fisheries Policy. You might as well just decide what you like about cassoulet and put those ingredients in. But duck or goose fat is essential for the flavour."

"It changes from town to town and village to village. I've been told that families have been known to fall out over what makes the perfect cassoulet."

• Cassoulet

This dish and other recipes cooked by Rick on the programme are featured in a book accompaying the series. Rick Stein's French Odyssey is published by BBC Books. RRP £20. ISBN 0563522135.

Here are some variations on cassoulet recipes from BBC Food:

• Mediterranean cassoulet with mixed pulses and harissa by Paul Gayler
• Sausage and mushroom cassoulet by Emma Crowhurst
• The ultimate cassoulet by Good Food Magazine
• Chicken and bean cassoulet by Ed Baines

Decide for yourself how similar cassoulet is to Lancashire hotpot with this recipe:

• Traditional Lancashire hotpot by James Martin

Not all the Rick Stein recipes featured on the programme are available on the website owing to copyright issues. However the recipes cooked by Rick on the programme are featured in a book accompanying the series. Rick Stein's French Odyssey published by BBC Books. RRP £20. ISBN 0563522135.

You can trace Rick's journey through southern France on his website, which features an interactive map and directory of the places he visited.