French Duck Confit Recipe (Confit de Canard)
A traditional French dish where duck legs are slowly cooked in duck fat until tender, juicy, and rich in flavor, then crisped before serving. Perfect for make-ahead entertaining or a special dinner.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes (plus optional overnight marinating)
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes (plus optional marinating)
- Yield: 6 servings
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Slow-Cooked
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Halal
Ingredients
6 duck legs
4 cloves garlic
1 sprig thyme
4 cups duck fat
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Rub duck legs generously with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 225°F (110°C).
- Place duck legs in a heavy ovenproof pot, layering with garlic cloves and thyme.
- Pour duck fat over the legs until fully submerged.
- Cover and cook in the oven for 2 ½–3 hours, until meat is tender and pulls easily from the bone.
- Let duck cool in the fat.
- When ready to serve, remove legs from fat and crisp skin in a skillet or under the broiler until golden brown.
Notes
Salt overnight for the deepest flavor, but a few hours also works.
Add rosemary, bay leaves, or shallots for extra herbal depth.
If short on duck fat, mix with a little olive oil, though traditionalists prefer pure duck fat.
Confit can be refrigerated submerged in fat for up to 2 weeks or frozen for 3 months.
Strain and reuse duck fat for future cooking or roasting potatoes.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 duck leg
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 0g
- Sodium: 320mg
- Fat: 32g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Unsaturated Fat: 20g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 0g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 28g
- Cholesterol: 115mg
