Confit: the best (and most delicious) way of cooking duck

Of all the myriad ways of preserving, confit always strikes me as wonderfully improbable. The ability to preserve meat just through cooking it slowly in its own fat feels particularly wild. And the fact that this simple, unlikely process makes the meat more tender, more flavoursome than any other way of handling it only adds to the magic.

Of course, if I pause for a moment and engage my brain, it’s very obvious why it’s such a successful method: most preservation relies on salting to reduce water levels, or excluding oxygen from the preserved food, both of which prevent bacteria from growing. Duck confit takes a belt and braces approach. The duck is salted (and sometimes spiced) for 24 hours – and once cooked, it is entirely submerged in fat, which protects it from air. Treating the duck in this way means that it can then be stored in a cool place for months.

The slow cook ensures that the dark, rich, slightly gamey meat is so soft it can be cut with a spoon

Confit, like most preservation, was borne out of necessity in an age when refrigeration and a year-round food supply were pipe dreams. It ensured that meat would be available and safe far beyond its season and usual shelf life.

Speaking of refrigeration, I am going to be a bit of a party pooper. While technically, yes, the whole point is to negate the need for the fridge, without going through a full canning process, or using a much higher proportion of salt, there is a small possibility of it spoiling or even being harmful. So it is important that you refrigerate duck confit – but once you do, it really can be kept for months without any problems.