Out of all foods I tried in France, duck confit may be one of my top favorite, other than CROISSANT, Andouillette, foie gras over fig jam, and escargot. I thought this is hard to make, but it turned out to be way more straightforward – cure meat, confit (seal in oil) and pan fry. After the first two steps, they can stay in fridge for up to a month. Back in the old days without fridge, “confit” helps preserve food for a long period of time.
RECIPE
- duck leg
- salt
- black pepper, freshly grind if possible
- fresh thyme
- bay leaves
- garlic
- duck fat (~1kg duck fat per 6 duck legs)
STEP 1: pat duck legs dry
STEP 2: mix salt, ground pepper, fresh thyme, minced garlic, bay leaves torn to small pieces; rub the mix on duck leg surface; refrigerate for at least 12 hours
STEP 3: remove garlic, thyme, and bay leaves; rinse off salt and pepper; pat duck legs dry
STEP 4: melt duck fat over low heat in Dutch oven or in microwave, place duck legs in the duck fat – ideally the duck leg should be submerged in duck fat, if do not want too much oil, duck fat at half of duck leg height is also sufficient
STEP 5: add in a few cloves of garlic, fresh thyme, bay leaves into Dutch oven
STEP 6: bake duck legs ~225-250F for 2-3 hours, dependent on how many duck legs there are. For 2 duck legs, I baked 225F for 2h45min
STEP 7: gently remove the super tender duck legs from Dutch oven, ensure it’s chilled before pan-frying so they don’t break apart
STEP 8: filter duck fat for future use, or fry potato in duck fat as side dish! Of course, salad may be the more fitting side dish
STEP 9: after duck legs are chilled for ~2-3 hours, over low heat, skin down, pan fry duck leg. When both duck skin and bottom are golden and crispy, and more duck fat has been “squeezed” out, they are ready to serve!
READY TO SERVE! CRISPY SKIN AND TENDER MEAT~!!
