Confit duck leg
Ingredients
- 4 large Gressingham duck legs
- 1 kg duck fat
- 6 tbsp coarse rock salt
- Few sprigs of rosemary and thyme
- 1 garlic bulb, cloves separated, skins on and flattened with knife
- 1 tsp of whole black peppercorns
- Zest of orange
- 2 bay leaves
Preparations
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step 1
You will need to start the confit process at least a day before.
step 2Scatter one fifth of the salt, herbs and garlic in the base of a deep tray or dish big enough to hold the duck legs. Place the legs skin side down into the dish and sprinkle the rest of the salt, herbs and garlic over the legs and add the peppercorns, bay leaf and orange zest.
step 3Cover and place in the fridge for at least 12 hours.
step 4When you are ready to cook, remove the duck legs from the fridge, scrape off the herbs and salt, rinse under cold water and pat dry.
step 5Pre heat the oven to 125°C, 105°C fan, Gas Mark ½.
step 6Place a large saucepan or casserole dish onto a low heat on the hob and melt the duck fat. Place the duck legs in and bring to a gentle simmer. The fat should cover the duck legs, if not add more.
step 7Cover with a lid or foil and place into the oven. Cook for 2½ to 3 hours until tender. Test if the meat is ready by piercing with a skewer, it should go through the meat easily – if not return to the oven for another 15 mins and try again.
step 8When they are ready, take out of the oven and allow to cool, take the legs out of the fat while still a little warm.
step 9At this stage you can put the legs into a container, pour over some of the duck fat, cover and store in the fridge for up to a month.
step 10When you are ready to cook the duck legs, remove from the container, scrape off any excess fat and place into a roasting tray skin side up.
step 11Pre heat your oven to 200°C, 180°C Fan, gas mark 6. Roast for approx 30 minutes until the duck is warm through and the skin is crispy. To help speed this process you can place under a grill for the last couple of minutes.
step 12There are several options to serve. A traditional take would be with a rich red wine sauce, mash and braised red cabbage or puy lentils but you could quite easily shred and serve as part of a salad.