cheater’s duck confit

today is my husbands birthday (happy birthday honey!) we usually have date night friday nights but since today is a special day, it’s tonight. since going out takes a lot of planning right now, we usually eat in. since it is a special evening i try create some kind of fancy meal we would order in a restaurant.

it’s fun to sit down together and pretend we are out. a glass of wine, a fancy meal, candles, good conversation, it’s a great evening (especially since we can eat in our pj’s).

a came upon this cooking show a couple weeks ago and i have become obsessed. secrets of a restaurant chef. anne burrell. ever hear of her? i haven’t until now and i am so happy i happened to stumble upon her show. her recipes are great and so easy to make at home. so when i came across her cheater’s duck confit i was sold.

i used to think making duck confit was a little time consuming. although this recipe is not something you can whip up in a half an hour, it’s worth every minute. it is probably the best piece of duck i have ever had. that’s saying a lot because i love duck. if i come across duck in a restaurant, i order it (we even served it at our wedding).

if you have a special occasion and really want to impress, or you too are having “date night” give this a try. you will not be disappointed

cheater’s duck confit adapted from anne burrell

1. generously season both sides of the duck legs with salt.
2. in a dutch oven or oven/stove top pot lightly coat bottom of pot with olive oil (about a tbl). lay the duck legs skin side down and turn on the heat to a low simmer. cook the duck legs on a low simmer and slowly to render the fat. this will take a while, don’t rush it and turn up the heat. it is really important to cook off as much of the fat as possible.
3. once the pan is full of fat (it happens fast), turn up the heat, brown the duck on both sides.
4. meanwhile preheat oven to 400 degrees.
5. when the legs are nice and brown, remove from the pan and set aside. add the onions and season with salt, mix. cover the onions and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes.
6. when the onions are wilted, take off the lid mix, add garlic and cook for another 10 minutes.
7. add the wine, thyme and bay leaves. give it a good mix and then add the duck back in the pot.
8. cover and place in oven.
9. the next step is called braising. you want to braise the duck for about 90 minutes.
10. every 30 minutes take the pot out of the oven and mix to make sure onions don’t burn.

how do you know when it is done? the duck is literally falling off the bone.

take the duck legs out of the pot and serve with your favorite salad.

this is one of the best “date night” meals we have had in a while. i don’t think i could ever make duck any other way again.