Duck Confit…. not something I’d even thought of cooking up to a couple of weeks back. For some insane reason (without even looking up a recipe), I just presumed it would be overly complicated and way too much bother. How wrong can a girl be?
We ‘got rid of’ four ducks earlier in the year. Two of them are still safely tucked away in the freezer, but the first two have been totally enjoyed.
When we were prepping the ducks for the freezer we decided to portion one out and leave the others ‘whole’.
That, of course, meant that I had two duck legs…. so what should I do with them? It was only then I decided to check for a Duck Confit recipe. Doh! It is so easy! Seriously, a little bit of planning but otherwise plain sailing.
This recipe is adapted from the Duck Confit recipe in Avoca Cafe Cookbook II…. but yes you’ve guessed it I didn’t have all the ingredients so improvisation was called for!
Ingredients:
- 2 duck legs
- coarse sea salt
- 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves
- 2 gloves garlic, crushed
- 1 bay leaf
- Black Pepper
- Lard c. 4 tablespoons….. (the original recipe called for goose fat, so if you don’t have lard use goose or duck fat)
Recipe:
The night before douse your duck legs with the sea salt and half of the thyme. Cover in cling film and leave in fridge until the next day.
Preheat your oven to 170 deg. C.
Brush the salt off the duck legs and place in a casserole with a tight-fitting lid. Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of thyme leaves, bay leaf and crushed garlic, black pepper and whatever fat you are using. I used about 4 to 5 tablespoons of lard.
(I add a layer of tinfoil to make sure my casserole is well sealed.)
Place in the oven for about half an hour. Remove and check the level of fat…. you may need to add more. It needs to come at least half way up the duck legs.
Return to the oven for another hour to an hour and a quarter.
Now if you are virtuous and full of restraint, you can remove the duck legs allow them to cool, then put them in a clean pot and cover with the fat so you can enjoy them another day.
THAT DID NOT HAPPEN HERE!
We devoured them there and then, served with mashed potatoes and kale (and second time around with mashed potato and carrot and parsnip mash). You must save the fat though…. totally delicious for roast potatoes or any roast veg.
So can someone explain to me why I didn’t try this years ago????
Enjoy 🙂
Sounds delicious, Margaret. I love duck, especially duck confit. I’ve tried it where I just salted them for 30 mins before cooking having first pierced the skin all over with as skewer. I’m sure it’s not as good as the overnight version but it was still pretty tasty!
Duck is so bloody expensive, I rarely buy it. I need a farm, and some ducklings. Next ‘special’ dinner just might be Duck Confit 🙂
We used to occasionally buy duck, but having tasted our own, there is nothing quite like homegrown! I don’t think I would be buying it here either as it is so expensive. Put in a request for a duck dinner for your next birthday 🙂
Good idea 🙂