Confit Duck Leg Pozole Recipes

CONFIT DUCK LEG POZOLE

Steps:

• Remove skin from duck leg and cut skin into 1/4-inch pieces. Cook skin in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally, until fat is rendered and skin is golden brown, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer duck skin with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and season with salt. Pour off and discard fat from saucepan (or reserve for another use), then wipe pan clean and set aside.
• While skin cooks, remove duck meat from bones, reserving bones, and finely shred.
• Toast chile in dry saucepan over moderate heat, turning with tongs, until fragrant and pliable, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a bowl. Cover chile with boiling-hot water and soak until softened, about 20 minutes. Drain chile and transfer to a blender.
• While chile soaks, add onion and garlic to dry saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add water, oregano, honey, cumin, and reserved bones and simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes. Discard bones.
• Blend broth mixture with softened chile and 1/4 teaspoon salt in blender until very smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids). Transfer purée to saucepan. Add hominy and shredded duck meat and simmer, covered, 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro and salt to taste, then serve topped with duck skin.
• *Available at butcher shops, some supermarkets, and D'Artagnan (800-327-8246).
• **Available at Latino markets, many supermarkets, and Chile Today-Hot Tamale (800-468-7377).

DUCK POZOLE

Steps:

• Place the bacon in a large, 1-gallon stockpot or Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat until crispy, 10 to 12 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pan and set aside on a paper towel lined plate.
• Increase the heat to medium-high and add the smoked duck to the stockpot. Sear until caramelized on all sides, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onions and cumin and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and begin to caramelize, about 4 minutes. Season the onions lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in the zucchini, yellow squash, and carrots and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the jalapenos and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add the duck stock and hominy and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, occasionally skimming off any fat that rises to the surface.
• Add the blanched corn and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Remove the pozole from the heat and stir in the cilantro, lime juice, and reserved bacon. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper, to taste. Ladle pozole into soup bowls, garnish with fresh cilantro sprigs and lime wedges, and serve immediately.

CONFIT DUCK LEGS

Steps:

• Mince and mash 4 garlic cloves to a paste with a pinch of kosher salt. Stir together paste, kosher salt (1/4 cup), thyme, quatre épices, shallots, and bay leaves in a large bowl. Add duck legs and toss to coat, then marinate, covered and chilled, at least 1 day and up to 2 days.
• Wipe off marinade with paper towels.
• Trim off 1/4 inch from top of garlic head, then stick 2 whole cloves into head. Melt duck fat in a wide large heavy pot over low heat, then cook garlic head and duck legs, uncovered, over low heat until fat registers approximately 190°F, about 1 hour. Continue to cook duck, maintaining a temperature of 190 to 210°F, until a wooden pick slides easily into thighs, 2 to 3 hours more.
• Transfer duck with a slotted spoon to a large bowl (reserve garlic for another use if desired). Slowly pour duck fat through a fine-mesh sieve into a large crock or deep bowl, leaving any cloudy liquid or meat juices in bottom of pot, then pour strained fat over duck legs to cover by 1 inch. (If necessary, shorten drumstick bones 1 to 2 inches using a large heavy knife to fit legs more tightly in bowl.) Cool to room temperature, about 2 hours, then chill, covered, at least 8 hours.
• Just before serving, remove duck from fat (reserve fat for another use, such as frying), scraping off most of fat, then cook, skin side down, in a large heavy nonstick skillet over low heat, covered, until skin is crisp and duck is heated through, 15 to 20 minutes

CONFIT DUCK

Steps:

• The day before cooking, put the cumin and coriander seeds in a dry pan and toast until they are slightly coloured and aromatic. Remove to a board and crush them with the blade of a knife. Crush the juniper berries and mix with the spices and the salt. Rub the mixture over the duck, scatter with thyme, rosemary and sliced garlic and chill for 24 hrs, turning two or three times as they marinate.
• Next day, heat oven to 150C/130C fan/ gas 2. Wipe the duck with kitchen paper and pat dry, but don't wash off the marinade. (The salt extracts the water from the meat cells, which will be reinflated with fat as the duck cooks gently. If you wash it, you will simply reinflate the cells with water.)
• Put the duck in a cast-iron casserole and cover with the goose fat or duck fat. Add the bay leaves and peppercorns and cook for about 2½ hrs, or until the meat is almost falling away from the bone. You can store the duck very simply by placing it in a pudding bowl, covering it with the fat and keeping it in the fridge: as long as it stays covered with fat it will last for weeks.
• To cook, remove the confit duck legs from their fat. Put an ovenproof frying pan on the stove until it is hot. Add the duck legs, skin-side down, and cook for 4 mins. Turn the legs and transfer the pan to the oven for 30 mins, until crisp.

DUCK CONFIT

Steps:

• Season the duck legs with kosher salt on both sides. Place them in a large resealable bag. Add the lemon zest and slices, garlic, allspice berries, juniper berries and fresh thyme. Seal, and massage the duck legs through the bag until all of the ingredients are evenly dispersed. Refrigerate for 24 hours to marinate.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F (93 degrees C).
• Remove the duck legs from the marinade. Rinse them off and pat dry. Place the rest of the contents of the bag into the bottom of an oven safe dish just large enough to hold the legs in a single layer, preferably enameled cast iron or glass. Arrange the duck legs skin side down in the dish. Pour the duck fat into a small saucepan and warm over low heat until liquid. Pour over the duck legs until they are completely covered. If the legs are not covered, you can top it off with some olive oil. As the legs cook, more fat will be rendered from the skin. Cover the dish with a lid.
• Bake for 6 to 7 hours in the preheated oven, until the meat pulls easily from the bone. Remove the duck legs from the fat and place in a sealable container. You may leave the bones in or remove them. Make sure there is room at the top of the container. Strain all of the solids from the remaining fat and discard the solids. Pour the fat over the duck in the container, covering completely. Seal and allow to come to room temperature. Once the jar is cool, place in the refrigerator and let the duck meat cure for 2 months. Reserve any leftover duck fat for other uses.