Duck Confit

Ingredients

• 4 duck legs
• 2 tablespoons soft butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Directions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. 2

   Cream the butter by beating it vigorously against the sides of a small bowl with a wooden spoon until it is fluffy, then beat in the oil.

3. 3

   Dry the duck with paper towels, coat the legs with creamed butter and oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lay them skin side down on a broiler rack, and broil them 4 inches from the heat for 15 minutes, then basting them once with pan juices, and then broiling 5 minutes more.

4. 4

   Increase the heat to 400 degrees and broil for 15 minutes, basting the duck once during this 15 minutes.

5. 5

   With tongs, turn the quarters over, baste and broil skin side up for 10 minutes. Increase the heat to 450 degrees, baste again, and broil for 10 minutes more.

6. 6

   Remove the duck to a plate and pour the drippings from the broiler pan into a bowl, scraping in any browned bits that cling to the pan. Degrease the drippings and reserve the grease and the drippings to use in the recipe you are making with the duck confit - for example, if you are using them to make cassoulet, you would mix the degreased drippings in with the bean broth/ braising liquid, and you would top the cassoulet with two tablespoons of the "grease" - the duck fat.