Duck Confit

Ingredients

• sea salt, for curing
• 4 clovegarlic, for curing and flavoring
• 4 leafbay leaves, for curing
• thyme, fresh; for curing
• 4duck legs
• 0.4 cupwhite wine, poured into pan before cooking; alcohol cooked off

Method

1. 1

   The day before you want to eat, scatter half the sea salt, half the garlic, half the bay leaves and half the thyme across the base of a small shallow dish.

2. 2

   Lay the duck legs on top skin side up and cover them with the rest of the salt, garlic and herbs. Cover the dish and leave it in the fridge overnight, or up to two days.

3. 3

   Pour the white wine into a saucepan just big enough to hold the legs in one layer. Brush the cure off the duck and settle the legs in skin side down.

4. 4

   Put the lid on and set it over medium heat. The moment the wine bubbles, drop the heat as low as your stovetop will go and leave it for 2 hours, looking in now and then to check that nothing more than the occasional bubble breaks the surface. By the end the legs will be sitting in their own rendered fat and the meat will feel loose on the bone.

5. 5

   Let it cool. The duck is cooked at this point and can be eaten as it is.

6. 6

   To store it, pack the legs tightly into a jar and pour the fat over them, leaving the dark liquid at the bottom of the pan behind. They keep for a month in the fridge or three in the freezer. Save that liquid separately, because it makes excellent gravy and freezes just as well.

7. 7

   To crisp them, heat the oven to 425°F/400°F fan/gas 7, lift the legs out of the fat and lay them skin side down in an ovenproof skillet. Roast for 30–40 minutes, turning once, until the skin is brown and brittle. Serve with the reheated gravy, a sharp salad and roast potatoes.