Duck Confit (Confit de Canard)
- Marinating Time: 8 hours
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: Serves 3-4
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: French
A classic French recipe for Duck Confit, or Confit de Canard, which are duck legs slowly cooked in duck fat until meltingly tender, and then pan fried until the skin is crispy and golden. Recipe with step-by-step photos.
Ingredients
- sea salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 4 duck legs (thigh and drumstick attached) (See Kitchen Notes below)
- 1 kg (2 lb) duck fat (See Kitchen Notes below)
- 2 bay leaves
- 4–6 sprigs of thyme
Instructions
To prepare the duck legs
- Generously rub sea salt onto the flesh side of the duck legs, and season with cracked pepper.
- Cover with cling film and leave the duck in the fridge overnight.
To make the Duck Confit
- Rinse the duck legs under running water and pat dry with kitchen paper.
- Melt the duck fat in a large saucepan that will hold the duck legs in a single layer. The duck fat should be at a temperature of 100°C/212°F.
- Immerse the duck in the fat, add a few bay leaves and some sprigs of thyme.
- You should have enough duck fat to just cover all of the duck legs. Keep in mind that, as the duck legs are cooking, they will render fat as well.
- Cook the duck on a very low heat for about 2 hours until the meat falls off the bone easily. There should be barely a bubble seen in the oil during this time. An easier way to maintain a constant temperature is to place the saucepan into the oven (without fan) at 100°C/212°F.
- Check regularly to make sure that the oil is not bubbling, otherwise you will end up deep-frying and drying out the duck legs.
- To test if the duck is cooked to the right texture, carefully remove one duck leg to a plate with the skin side facing down. Test with a fork to see if the meat falls away from the bone easily.
To serve the Duck Confit
- To serve the duck right away, heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat (with no oil as there is enough oil from the duck legs) and sear the duck legs skin-side down until golden and crispy.
- Turn the duck legs over and brown the other side.
- Serve with a green salad and roast potatoes.
Kitchen Notes
Duck legs work best in this recipe and I prefer to buy small duck legs which are easier to serve than large ones; large duck legs tend to be too big for one person. Duck breasts can also be used in this recipe, but they are not as commonly used.
To prepare Duck Confit after it has been preserved, let the container come to room temperature or until the duck can be easily removed from the duck fat in one piece. You could also gently warm the container in a very low oven which will melt the duck fat, allowing you to easily remove the duck.
Duck fat can be purchased from specialty stores or butchers. I buy them sold in glass jars in the refrigerated section.
Any leftover duck fat should be strained of any brown meat juices and kept in a sterilised glass jar in the fridge.
You can reuse leftover duck fat to make Duck Confit again, and it will be even more delicious because the duck fat will already have a lot of flavour from the previous batch of duck confit. I love to use leftover duck fat to make the best roast potatoes.
STORAGE TIPS
If you are not serving the Duck Confit right away, place the duck into a clean container, preferably made from glass or ceramic. Strain the leftover duck fat into a large bowl or jug, taking care not to catch any of the brown meat juices which should be discarded. Completely cover the duck with the strained duck fat, and leave to cool to room temperature. Cover the container and keep in the fridge for up to 1 month. Joël Robuchon gives further instructions to heat enough lard to cover the (set) duck fat by 1 to 2 cm as a method of keeping the confit for longer. Once the lard has set, press a piece of parchment paper onto the lard, completely cover the container and store in the fridge for 5-6 months.
OVEN TEMPERATURES
All recipes on this website state temperatures for a regular oven (i.e. a conventional oven without fan). If you have a convection oven with a fan, please consult the manufacturer’s handbook on how to adjust the temperature and baking time accordingly.
CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 418
- Sugar: 0g
- Sodium: 429.7mg
- Fat: 42.9g
- Carbohydrates: 0.4g
- Fiber: 0.2g
- Protein: 7.7g
- Cholesterol: 67.3mg
View the recipe online: https://eatlittlebird.com/duck-confit/
