A Book of Mediterranean Food

Languedoc every farmer’s wife has
the ingredients of the dish within
arm’s length, festoons of sausages
and hams hanging in her kitchen,
jars of goose and pork preserved in
their own fat on her larder shelves,
you understand how the cassoulet
came into being; it was evolved to
make the best use of the local
materials; when you have to go out
and buy these things the cost is
high (this is just as much the case
in France as in England) and
although quite a good dish can be
made at moderate cost it should be
remembered that tinned beans and
sausages served in an earthenware