I'm Pierre — I'll Take You to a Proper Toulousain Cassoulet and the Markets of the Pink City

My name is Pierre and I grew up in Toulouse, the pink city of Southwest France. Toulouse is not on most tourist itineraries and that is a mistake — it is one of the great food cities of France and its cuisine is completely different from Parisian food. Cassoulet is the dish: a slow-cooked bean and meat casserole with duck confit, Toulouse sausage, and sometimes lamb, that has been made in this region since the 14th century. I take groups to the Marché Victor Hugo — the covered market that sits in the middle of the city and is where every serious cook in Toulouse buys their produce — and then to a brasserie near the Capitole for a proper weekday cassoulet with a glass of Cahors or Gaillac wine. I explain the food culture of the Southwest and why it is different from and arguably better than the food that France is internationally famous for.