← Nouns Cooking · French

Ingredients

• 300 g dried white beans (Tarbais or haricot)
• 1 smoked ham hock (about 1 kg)
• 2.5 l Water
• 2 Onion, chopped
• 4 cloves Garlic, chopped
• 3 Carrot, diced
• 2 Turnip, diced
• 2 Leek, sliced
• 3 Potato, peeled and diced
• ½ Savoy cabbage, shredded
• 1 Bay leaves
• 4 sprigs Thyme
• 4 confit duck legs (optional)
• salt and black pepper

Method

1. Soak the beans overnight in plenty of cold water, then drain.
2. Put the beans, ham hock, water, onions, garlic, bay and thyme in a very large pot. Bring to the boil, skim off any foam, then simmer gently, partly covered, for 1½ hours.
3. Add the carrots, turnips, leeks and potatoes and simmer for 30 min more.
4. Stir in the cabbage and simmer for 30 min, until the cabbage is silky and the beans are creamy. The soup should be thick enough for a spoon to almost stand up.
5. Lift out the ham hock, pull the meat from the bone in chunks and return it to the pot. Season (the hock is salty, so taste first).
6. If using confit, roast the legs skin-side up at 220°C (200°C fan, 425°F) for 15–20 min until crisp. Ladle the garbure into deep bowls over toasted bread and top each with a duck leg.

Tips

• In Béarn the last spoonful is mixed with a splash of red wine in the bowl and drunk: it is called faire chabrot.
• It tastes better the next day; thin with a little water when reheating.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Saveur Gypsy Plate