Duck Leg Confit Hash Recipes

EASY DUCK CONFIT

Steps:

• Dry the duck: Pat the duck legs dry with paper towels.
• Slowly heat the duck in the oven: Put the casserole in the oven and heat it to 300°F (150°C); if you have a digital oven, you could even go down to 285°F (140°C). Do not preheat the oven. You want to cook the duck as gently as possible. Walk away and watch football, go shopping, read a book or something. How long? Every duck has a different level of fat, so I can't tell you exactly. But it will be at least 90 minutes, and 2 hours is better. After 90 minutes, check the duck: It should be partly submerged in melted fat and the skin should be getting crispy.

EASY DUCK CONFIT

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaf pieces. Sprinkle duck generously with mixture. Place duck legs in a pan in one layer. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• The next day, heat oven to 325 degrees.Place duck legs, fat side down, in a large ovenproof skillet, with legs fitting snugly in a single layer (you may have to use two skillets or cook them in batches). Heat duck legs over medium-high heat until fat starts to render. When there is about 1/4 inch of rendered fat in pan, about 20 minutes, flip duck legs, cover pan with foil, and place it in oven. If you have used two pans, transfer duck and fat to a roasting pan, cover with foil and place in oven.
• Roast legs for 2 hours, then remove foil and continue roasting until duck is golden brown, about 1 hour more. Remove duck from fat; reserve fat for other uses.
• Serve duck hot or warm, over roasted potatoes or noodles or sturdy salad greens.

DUCK LEG CONFIT HASH

Steps:

• Cook duck legs, skin sides down, in a 12-inch cast-iron or heavy nonstick skillet over moderate heat, turning over once, until skin is golden and some of fat is rendered, about 8 minutes total. Transfer duck to a cutting board, reserving fat in skillet. When duck legs are cool enough to handle, remove skin with any visible fat, then chop skin and fat into 1/2-inch pieces and return to skillet (reserve meat). Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and pressing down on larger pieces, until fat is rendered and skin is deep golden and crisp all over, about 5 minutes. Remove skin with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
• Pour off all but 3 tablespoons fat from skillet, then add onion and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add squash, carrots, parsnips and potatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are browned, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, coarsely shred duck meat, discarding bones and any gristle.
• Stir duck into vegetables along with cream, port, parsley, fried duck skin, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and stir until combined. Reduce heat to moderately low, then smooth top of mixture and cook, undisturbed, until bottom of hash is golden when lifted with a spatula, 4 to 8 minutes.

DUCK CONFIT HASH

Steps:

• Cook duck legs, skin sides down, in a 12-inch cast-iron or heavy nonstick skillet over moderate heat, turning over once, until skin is golden and some of fat is rendered, about 8 minutes total. Transfer duck to a cutting board, reserving fat in skillet. When duck legs are cool enough to handle, remove skin with any visible fat, then chop skin and fat into 1/2-inch pieces and return to skillet (reserve meat). Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and pressing down on larger pieces, until fat is rendered and skin is deep golden and crisp all over, about 5 minutes. Remove skin with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
• Pour off all but 3 tablespoons fat from skillet, then add onion and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add carrots, potatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are browned, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, coarsely shred duck meat, discarding bones and any gristle.
• Stir duck into vegetables along with cream, Madeira, parsley, fried duck skin, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and stir until combined. Reduce heat to moderately low, then smooth top of mixture and cook, undisturbed, until bottom of hash is golden when lifted with a spatula, 4 to 8 minutes.

DUCK HASH ON TOASTED BAGUETTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Spread the baguette pieces on a baking sheet. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until crisp and light golden brown. Set aside.
• Put the sweet potato in a medium saucepan with cold water to cover, salt the water generously, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potato is just fork tender, about 6 minutes; drain and cool. Peel the potato and dice it into 1/4-inch cubes.
• Heat a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the duck legs skin side down and cook until the fat has rendered and the duck is warm, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the duck to a plate. If the skillet seems dry, add a bit of olive oil. Add the smashed garlic cloves and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Discard the rosemary and garlic. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 4 minutes. Add the celery and red pepper and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Season with the 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and some pepper. Add the minced garlic and cook about 2 minutes more.
• While the vegetables cook, remove the skin from the duck legs and discard. Shred the duck meat into long strips. Add the sweet potatoes, shredded duck and chicken broth to the skillet and warm over medium heat, adding more stock if mixture seems dry. Stir in the hoisin and hot sauce, and season, to taste. Remove from heat and stir in the chopped parsley and sherry vinegar. To serve, top each baguette slice with 1 heaping tablespoon of the duck hash.
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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