confit duck recipe

Buying ready-prepared duck confit makes this luxurious meal for two really simple. Try it served with mashed potatoes and watercress

Tender roast duck with citrus & carrots

shop-bought duck confit legs

slim carrot

garlic

orange, half juiced, half cut into wedges

vegetable oil

lemon juice

tbsp sherry vinegar

golden caster sugar

chicken stock (you'll only need this

bay leaves

thyme

potatoes and watercress

<p>Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan /gas 6. Scrape away any excess fat from the duck (you could keep this for duck fat potatoes), but keep any jelly. Put the carrots, garlic and orange wedges into a large roasting tin, then toss with the oil and season well. Season the duck legs, then sit them on top of the veg, skin-side up. Roast for 40 mins until the carrots are tender and the duck is turning golden.</p>

<p>Stir the citrus juice, vinegar and sugar together until the sugar dissolves. Pour over the veg, add the jellified duck or chicken stock, then tuck in the bay and thyme here and there. Roast for another 10 mins until the carrots are surrounded with syrupy sauce and the duck is golden. Season the sauce to taste, then serve with mashed potatoes and watercress.</p>

Easier to make than you might think, Allan Pickett&#8217;s confit-cooked duck rillettes make a wonderfully rich lunch or sharing starter.

Duck rillettes

high-welfare duck legs

duck fat (plus a little extra if needed)

dry white wine

For the salting mixture

rock salt

garlic cloves, finely chopped

thyme sprigs, leaves

rosemary sprigs, leaves

To serve

onions sourdough

To make the salting mixture, thoroughly mix the salt, garlic and herbs in a small bowl, crushing it together lightly. Lay the duck legs in a single layer in a baking tray, sprinkle with half the salting mixture, press it in, then turn over and sprinkle with the rest. Cover the tray, then put in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

The next day, rinse the legs in cold water to remove the salt mix and dry well with kitchen paper. Heat the oven to 130°C/110°C fan/gas ¾. Heat the duck fat and white wine in a large pan until steaming. Put the duck legs in a small roasting tin (or lidded casserole) and cover with the hot fat and wine mixture – the legs should be completely covered. If there’s a lot of duck poking out, add more melted fat or wine. Cover the duck in the tin/casserole with a sheet of non-stick baking paper, then cover the tin with foil and scrunch to seal (or put the lid on the casserole). Cook for 3-4 hours, checking halfway through to make sure the legs are covered by the fat. If any of the legs are above the fat level, turn them over. The legs are ready when the meat falls off the bone when pressed with a spoon. Remove the duck from the fat with tongs. Once the fat has cooled slightly, pour it into a jug. 

Leave the duck legs to cool, then pick off the meat (discard the skin and bones) and shred finely into a bowl. Pour some of the reserved fat onto the duck, then work it in with your hands. At first it will seem like the meat won’t accept the fat, but if you keep going, it will begin to soak in. Keep adding the fat in smallish additions until the mix in the bowl is roughly 50-50 fat to meat (or more, depending on how rich you want it). Any leftover fat can be stored for future use. 

Once the consistency is right, spoon into serving dishes (right) and chill. If storing for longer than 48 hours, cover with a thin layer of duck fat to seal. 

Remove from the fridge about an hour before you want to serve the rillettes, to take the chill off. Serve with pickles and toasted sourdough. 

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Tender roast duck with citrus & car...

Duck rillettes

Top 2 confit duck recipe recipes from across the web

The most viewed confit duck recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Tender roast duck with citrus & car...

Duck rillettes

The most viewed confit duck recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine