Classic Confit Duck Legs
French style confit duck legs, prepared & cooked the classic way! Here duck legs are lightly cured to season, slow cooked in fat until tender then roasted to crisp up the skin.
Servings: 4 People
Equipment
- Small Frying Pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Pestle & Mortar
- Large Container
- Roasting Tin
Ingredients
- 4 Duck Legs (220g Each - See Notes)
Cure
- 1 tsp Fennel Seeds
- 15 g Fine Sea Salt
- 6 Garlic Cloves (Grated)
- 1 Orange (Zested)
- 1 tsp Finely Chopped Thyme
- 1 tsp Finely Chopped Rosemary
- 1 tsp Black Peppercorns
Confit
- 500 g Vegetable Oil
- 250 g Duck Fat (See Notes)
Instructions
Cure
- Place the fennel seeds into a small frying pan then cook over a medium heat until toasted & fragrant. This will only take 1-2 minutes. Once toasted, place the seeds into a pestle & mortar then lightly crush.
- Add the sea salt into a small mixing bowl along with the grated garlic, orange zest, chopped herbs & crushed fennel seeds. Lightly crush the peppercorns in the pestle & mortar then add into the bowl as well.
- Give the cure a mix to combine then set to one side.
- Next, pat the duck legs dry with kitchen paper then place into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the cure over the duck legs then use your hands to make sure that all the duck is coated in cure.
- Transfer the duck & cure to an airtight container then chill in the fridge for 12-24 hours. I wouldn't recommend curing the duck for any longer than 24 hours, as it might become too salty.
Confit
- Preheat an oven to 100°c/80°c fan (212°f/176°f).
- Next, wash the cure off the duck legs under cold water, pat dry with kitchen paper then place into a small roasting tin. They should fit quite snugly & there should be plenty of room above the legs, so that we can completely cover then in fat.Make sure to get as much cure off the duck as possible!
- Place the vegetable oil & duck fat into a large saucepan then warm over a medium heat until melted. The fats should be warm but not boiling hot!
- Pour the warm fat over the duck legs, to completely cover them. Place a sheet of baking parchment over the fat then cover the tin with foil.
- Carefully place the tin into the preheated oven then cook gently for 5-6 hours until tender. To check the duck, give the meat a poke with a skewer. If it slides in with little to no resistance it's ready.It's best to start checking the duck at regular intervals after 4 hours.
- Once cooked, let the duck cool completely in the fat then transfer the duck legs & the fat to an airtight container. Chill in the fridge overnight before using.Chilling the duck overnight improves its' flavour! The duck legs should be completely submerged in the fat when you store them. Make sure to leave any juice that's not fat in the tray (it will at the bottom of the tin under the fat) as this will spoil the fat.
Roasting - To Crisp Up The Skin!
- Take the duck legs out of the fat, wipe off any excess fat from the meat with kitchen paper then place onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Let the duck sit at room temperature whilst you preheat your oven.Make sure to wipe as most of the fat off the duck legs otherwise it will smoke in the oven! If it's easier, you can gently microwave the tub of duck & fat, to melt the fat & make it easier to take the duck out. Don't heat it up too much though!
- Preheat an oven to 220°c/200°c fan (428°f/392°f).
- Place the duck into the preheated oven then roast for 25-30 minutes, until the skin is crisp & golden and the meat is hot. Let the duck rest for 5 minutes then serve.
Notes
1. Cooking In An Aga - Slow cook the confit duck in the simmering oven, on a grid shelf placed onto the floor. To crisp up the skin, cook the duck legs on the second from top set of runners in the roasting oven.
2. Duck Legs - I used Gressingham duck legs which weigh 220 grams each (they come in 440g packs & you get 2 duck legs per pack). Don't worry if your's weigh a few grams less/more than this though. If there's a big weight difference, we're making a 1.75% cure, which means you'll need to times the total weight of the duck legs by 0.0175 to work out the weight of salt that you'll need.
3. Cure - Make sure to give the duck legs at least 12 hours of curing time but no more than 24 hours, as they could get too salty.
4. Duck Fat - Traditionally, you'd use just duck fat to confit duck legs. It's pretty expensive though so I like to use a mix of vegetable oil & duck fat. You could use just duck fat or just vegetable oil if you'd prefer though.
5. Storage - Confit duck would traditionally be stored submerged in duck fat for several months as the fat is a preservative. However, I would recommend serving it within 3 days just to be on the safe side! You'll need to store your duck in the fridge, in an airtight container.
6. Serving - You can serve your duck legs whole but the meat will be tender enough to pull as well. I served mine mixed with some hoisin sauce in wraps!