Originally a peasant dish, confit is a method of preserving in which the meat is first salted, then slowly cooked in its own fat, finally it is cooled layered & covered in the fat where it should keep, stored sensibly, perfectly well for months. Of course there is seasoning, for example star anise is used in Asian duck recipes, orange in European recipes, but this changes according to preference or tradition.
The legs I have here are from Moulard ducks, since the 1960's the breed of choice for foie gras production when Muscovy & Pekin ducks were crossbred as an alternative in favour of the traditional Toulouse Goose. & oh what legs! - both breed & farming methods mean these ducks are large. The breasts, one will feed two people. The legs, well look at the pic, you can see for yourself their size. Additionally, the thighs on these drumsticks are wonderfully enriched with a nice layer of fat, but again this will vary according to breed. I paid just over €4 per twin pack for the ones I'm cooking here which, at one leg per portion, I'm pretty happy about.
Ingredients: confit de canard
4 duck legs, usually trimmed, though I've left thighs attached on mine
a good handful of sea salt
a few sprigs of thyme
3 whole star anise
5 or 6 juniper berries
5 or 6 peppercorns
zest of one orange, though I've used lemon cos I have no oranges right now
a clove of garlic
goose or duck fat
Method: stage 1
*select a good dish to hold the duck legs overnight, preferably not plastic as it may taint the flavour. I've used the bottom of a tagine dish, which is flat & wont take up too much room in the fridge
*peel & crush slightly the garlic, whacking it with the side of my knife is what i do, & rub the dish all over with the garlic
*taking a handful of salt, rub the legs, just take them in hand & get in there, be thorough, don't be shy
*lay the salted legs in your dish, placing herb/zest/berries/pepper between layers
*cover with clingfilm & sit in the fridge for 24/36 hours
Method: stage 2
*set the oven to 120º Celsius
*brush/wash the salt off the duck legs
*in a single layer, place flat in an oven proof dish
*cover with warmed duck/goose fat, adding the herb/herb/zest/berries/pepper
(if you just don't have enough, turn legs over half way through cooking)
(if you just don't have enough, turn legs over half way through cooking)
*cover the pan with foil
*cook in the oven for 3 hours.
*remove from the oven & let the whole dish cool
* CAREFULLY place each leg in a clean dish, strain the liquid fat over them, making sure each leg is fully covered.
Method: stage 3
*whenever removing legs from their storage, use clean thongs, NOT your hands, as bateria will be introduced, shortening the life of the preserved meat
*also, sit the dish on the kitchen bench a while to soften the fat before removing the legs.
*to serve the confit, some crisp the skin up in a hot pan, I prefer simply to place the leg on an oven tray, there is ample fat coating, warming for 5 minutes of so & resting in a gentle heat until required
*to serve the confit, some crisp the skin up in a hot pan, I prefer simply to place the leg on an oven tray, there is ample fat coating, warming for 5 minutes of so & resting in a gentle heat until required
As a dish in itself, confit of duck is wonderful eaten on its own, hot or cold. The meat is so tender & it's flavoursome. With a potato of some description for a hot main, maybe a dollop of mash, maybe fondant potatoes made with duck stock. In this region, Pommes à la Sarladaise is often on the menu, a kind of semolina smashed potato cooked in duck fat. With cabbage is another classical combination, as with garbure. At Ten Twenty Four in Hawkes Bay, we took the confit meat & rolled it in a spring roll, serving it with pickled red cabbage & apple, & it was sensational.
However you have it, duck confit is a really good dish to get right, it's worth the effort. I'd go so far as to say that if a list were to be written of the top 10 things to always have in the cooler, duck confit would be on my list.
However you have it, duck confit is a really good dish to get right, it's worth the effort. I'd go so far as to say that if a list were to be written of the top 10 things to always have in the cooler, duck confit would be on my list.
quack
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