Duck Confit

Recipe notes

Bring the duck to room temperature first

Duck legs fresh from the cold fridge will take significantly longer to crisp than duck at room temperature, and the skin can end up crisp on the outside while the meat is still cold at the centre. If you’ve made the confit ahead and stored it in the fridge, take the legs out 30 to 45 minutes before the final pan to bring them up to room temperature. The same applies if the duck has been stored submerged in fat in the fridge: let it come to room temp, then lift the legs out, pat dry, and proceed with the skin-side-down finish.

Origins

Duck confit is an age-old French dish of slow cooked duck in its own fat to tender perfection then finished to crispy skin indulgence. But the classic technique can take 30 hours to achieve…..we have taken a simpler approach, but still achieving great results.

Cartouche 101

A cartouche is a round (or rectangle in this recipe) of baking paper that sits on the surface to limit evaporation and keep the duck submerged.

Storage

Don’t discard the duck fat after cooking as it is liquid gold! Pass it through a sieve and store in the fridge for several months.

Serving ideas

Duck confit can be served with any sides you fancy, such as roast potatoes and salad, sauteed greens, cassoulet, mashed potato…whatever takes your fancy!

Ingredient notes

Duck fat:

Rendered duck fat is the cooking medium and the preservation agent in a confit. Its low smoking point and high stability at the temperatures used here (around 120°C oven, 80-85°C in the fat) make it ideal for long, slow cooking without the fat breaking down or frying the meat. It also transfers flavour from the aromatics into the duck over the cooking time. Duck fat is available at good butchers, specialty food stores, and in jars or tins at some supermarkets. Goose fat is the closest substitute and works equally well. Do not substitute with vegetable or olive oil: the flavour, stability and preservation properties are completely different. After cooking, strain the used fat through a fine sieve and refrigerate. It keeps for several months and is exceptional for roasting potatoes.

Duck legs:

You need to use Duck Legs for confit because they have a high proportion of intramuscular fat and connective tissue relative to breast meat. During the long, slow cook, the fat renders out and the connective tissue breaks down into gelatin, which makes the flesh extraordinarily tender and self-basting. Breast meat has none of these characteristics and would dry out completely at these cooking times. Duck legs are available from specialty butchers, and can often be found frozen at Asian grocers. Look for legs with the skin intact and undamaged, as the skin is what delivers the crisp finish in the final stage.

Speck:

Speck is a cured and cold-smoked pork product originating from the Alto Adige region of northern Italy, made from the leg or belly. It has a longer curing and smoking process than most bacon, which gives it a drier texture, more concentrated flavour, and a distinctly smoky character. It’s available as a whole piece at good delis, or pre-diced at most major supermarkets. For this recipe, dice it into 2cm lardons and render it in the pan until the fat is released and the pieces are browned and crisp. If you can’t find speck, guanciale or a good quality smoked bacon will substitute, though the flavour will be less complex.