This recipe is for 6 duck legs. But honestly, if you’re going to take the time to do it, go for a dozen legs and just double this recipe.
For the perfect wine pairings for this dish SHOP HOLIDAY GIFT SETS HERE!
Ingredients for 6 whole duck legs
6 whole duck legs (that means with thighs attached)
2 cups of duck fat (I typically buy this at the grocer or order on-line from a company like Dartagnan. You can also use extra virgin olive oil (or a combination of both olive oil and duck fat).
6 garlic cloves (and you don’t need to peel them)
4 shallots (and you don’t need to peel them)
4 teaspoons ground fennel seeds
4 teaspoons shopped rosemary (fresh)
6 tablespoons of course salt
Directions
1. Mix fennel seeds, rosemary and salt together in a small bowl.
2. Completely cover/rub the duck legs with this mixture and place in a sealable bag overnight.
3. The next day, before you cook, remove legs from bag and brush off the salt, fennel and rosemary mix.
4. Heat oven to 325 degrees.
5. Arrange your duck legs into a large roasting pan or a dutch oven pan (Le Crueset type) alongside the garlic, shallots and all of that beautiful duck fat (and/or olive oil).
6. Cover very tightly with heavy duty aluminum foil and roast in the oven for 2 hours or until the duck is very tender and the fat has rendered.
7. Remove from oven and allow to cool and come to room temperature. That’s it basically. After the legs have cooled they can sit in that fat in a refrigerator for a month.
8. When you want to use a leg, pull it from the pan in its fat and place it on a rack with a sheet pan underneath and heat under your broiler until the skin is brown and crispy.
9. Pair with roasted vegetables; roasted potatoes; roasted lentil dish; over beans; over bitter greens and dressing.
10. Oh, the fat. When the legs have all been consumed, I take the fat and put it in small plastic containers and leave it in the fridge or even the freezer for use for months and months for my roasting needs. It might be the best part of making Duck Confit.
SHOP HOLIDAY GIFT SETS HERE!