A standard on most bistro menus in France, you can even buy it in jars and cans ready to eat in all supermarkets but nothing beats making it yourself. It is a traditional, simple, classic French cooking in one bite, kind of dish and I believe it is best served, as is, accompanied by some french fries cooked in duck or goose fat. Perfection on a plate.
Make the duck confit at least 24 hours before you want to serve this dish.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 medium duck legs
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
600 g / 3 cups rendered duck or goose fat
1 bay leaf
4 garlic cloves, peeled, whole
Thyme, fresh, a few sprigs
Preparation:
Rub a generous amount of salt and black pepper into the duck legs
Place in a shallow dish, cover, and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 to 24 hours (not more), turning the legs over halfway through
Rinse the duck legs with cold water and dry well with paper towels
Preheat the oven to 140C / 285F
Melt the duck or goose fat in a dish or pan large enough to hold all 4 legs in a single layer
Add the bay leaf, garlic and thyme and cook over medium heat for a few minutes
Add the legs, making sure they are completely submerged, cover and transfer the dish to the oven
Cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, then remove from the oven and leave to cool in the fat
Chill (in the fat) for at least 24 hours or until needed
To serve, you can reheat the duck in one of two ways
Preheat the oven to 220C / 440F
Lift the duck legs out of the fat and wipe off most but not quite all of it with a paper towel
Put them skin–side up onto a rack resting over a roasting tin and roast for 15-20 minutes until the skin is crisp and golden and the meat has heated through
Alternatively, sauté the legs in a frying pan over medium heat until crisp golden and heated through
Either way, they are delicious
Serve with french fries
Bon Appétit!
Very nice! We love duck confit and I make it sous-vide so I only need about a tablespoon of duck fat per leg.
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That is definitely one advantage of using sous-vide.
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Stefan – you know how the ‘sous-vide’ and I turn our backs on each other but this time around I’ll have to agree with you ! I love duck confit but do not make it – perhaps your way I would 🙂 !
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I agree with you wholeheartedly.
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Our absolute favourite of favourites to the extent that we had it at our wedding breakfast …. Madame was a little perturbed because it is, as you rightly point out, bistro food but we insisted and although most of our guests were French and expecting (in Cantal at least) fillet de boeuf, they humoured us and declared it an excellent confit! I’ve never made it but I will, I will, I will!
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There is nothing like a good confit and it keeps for ages so an allrounds perfect food.
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I love duck confit 🙂
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It is hard to resist.
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Best. Food. Ever.
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Thank you. One of my favourites.
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Duck confit is one of my favorite foods . I use it for different recipes, my all time favorite are duck confit quesadillas. I just made a recipe using a Reynolds Oven bag. It was good and I didn’t need duck or goose fat which is very expensive here. Thanks for the recipe. Do you reuse your duck or goose fat?
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Yes, I do reuse it. Mostly to cook roast potatoes or sautéed potatoes.
We are lucky that it is not very expensive here. It is used more than other fats actually,
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I adore duck confit, but (or rather that´s why) I once overate and couldn´t see it around me for at least 6 months 😉 Love your recipe, and I agree that this is the time of year for such comforting food + a good bottle of red to go with it!
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