# Sauce for duck confit



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

I plan to make a duck confit, so duck leg slowly cooked in duck fat with some aromatic herbs like thyme and garlic.

It will be accompanied with cherry tomatoes confit (using olive oil confit, with garlic and basil), fondant potatoes, and some fresh salad leaves.

So, I am thinking to add some kind of sauce for the duck.

Is it necessary for duck confit? 

If yes, what would be the best sauce for this like this?

Note that I have never had duck confit before. My experience with duck was seared duck breast with some kind fruity citrus-y sauce 

Thanks for any suggestions


----------



## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

You will have to balance the sauce cause you have lots of stuff going there, confit cherries, fondant potatoes, saldad. Kindly sweet sauces, like Port or Madeira wine sauces (you'll need some demi-glace) are good for duck.

A shortcut to complex Western sauces is *tianmianjiang*, the sauce used to accompany Pekin duck.


----------



## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

Are the cherry tomatoes going to be fat poached as well or kept fresh and then tossed with the garlic confit?


----------



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

ordo said:


> You will have to balance the sauce cause you have lots of stuff going there, confit cherries, fondant potatoes, saldad. Kindly sweet sauces, like Port or Madeira wine sauces (you'll need some demi-glace) are good for duck.
> A shortcut to complex Western sauces is *tianmianjiang*, the sauce used to accompany Pekin duck.


The salad would be just some fresh young leaves, nothing added. 
I know peking duck sauce, isn't it too strong? But I will keep this as an option, because I have a bottle at home [emoji]128512[/emoji]

Thanks


----------



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

cheflayne said:


> Are the cherry tomatoes going to be fat poached as well or kept fresh and then tossed with the garlic confit?


I was thinking to confit the cherry tomatoes in olive oil, some kind of infused with basil and garlic. But your comments made me thinking to leave it raw fresh and just tossed with garlic basil confit. Nice suggestions [emoji]128512[/emoji]

I plan this dish for valentine day btw [emoji]128512[/emoji]


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Personally I wouldn't serve a sauce with the duck confit. I think it stands on its own and a sauce would distract from its texture and flavor.


----------



## spoiledbroth (Sep 25, 2014)

Sounds perhaps like an overly rich supper. I wouldnt confit the tomatoes otherwise everythig will have been cooked in fat save your rocket or whatever


----------



## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

I tend to agree with FrenchFries. But as i remember a nice sauce i did once with tienmienjiang (wich of course is overwhelming) i will try to replicate it with a chicken confit (no duck at reach) and present it in the Slow Cooking Challenge. The recipe involved tienmienjiang, butter and champagne. Let's see if it comes OK.





  








Pollo confit1.JPG




__
ordo


__
Jan 16, 2015


----------



## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

Josh71 said:


> I was thinking to confit the cherry tomatoes in olive oil, some kind of infused with basil and garlic. But your comments made me thinking to leave it raw fresh and just tossed with garlic basil confit. Nice suggestions [emoji]128512[/emoji]
> 
> I plan this dish for valentine day btw [emoji]128512[/emoji]


My thoughts were that if you were going to confit the cherry tomatoes they would provide enough of a saucy component to the dish. If not, a possibility would be a light but intense syrup such as a roasted tomato and xeres vinegar gastrique or a roasted golden bell pepper and golden balsamic vinegar gastrique. Although I agree with others that have posted that sauce is not necessary with duck confit.


----------



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

French Fries said:


> Personally I wouldn't serve a sauce with the duck confit. I think it stands on its own and a sauce would distract from its texture and flavor.


I am firmly of this opinion.


----------



## steve tphc (Sep 18, 2012)

I think a little sauce would be nice and you might consider watercress salad.

Here is the recipe from my book.

[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <wunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <wontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument></xml><![endif][if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles></xml><![endif][if gte mso 10]><![endif]

_*Orange Sauce Bigarade*_



_Bigarade_ (French for "bitter orange) is a classic brown sauce for roasted fowl. Bigarade sauce usually combines an enriched stock, drippings, orange and lemon juice, blanched orange peel, and Curaçao, or Grand Marnier, or triple sec, or Contreau.

Juice from 1 orange

Jest of 1 orange, finely chopped
1 cup Veal, Chicken or Duck Stock[sup]1[/sup] reduced to ¼ cup

2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon or red wine vinegar
Jigger of triple sec or Curaçao

1 teaspoon Crème Sherry

Add drippings from the roasting pan or duck stock or a tablespoon veal demi-glace.

Combine ingredients in a sauce pan and reduce to a sauce over medium low. Stir as necessary. Paint on fowl after it has roasted and the skin is crispy. You can coat the birds the last ten minutes of cooking but do not cook at a high temperature as the sugar in the sauce may burn.

Note:

Substitute 1 tablespoon chicken or veal demi-glace.


----------



## braising cows (Aug 12, 2012)

I usually like to introduce greens when confiting things, nice peppery arugula with an acidic vinaigrette or some compressed fruit is a pretty nice contrast to the heavy richness of the duck.


----------



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

Thanks for all the feedback. After reading all the comments, I think I will not put special sauce with the duck confit.

Probably a drizzle of infused olive oil with thyme and garlic, really little because I would imagine confit will already be oily.

I will try with a bit vinaigrette, that's a good idea!

It will be served with fresh cherry tomatoes and fresh green salad leaves, yes, loves the peppery arugula / rocket leaves.

And fondant potatoes, I want to try to make this, never had one


----------



## everydaygourmet (Apr 4, 2012)

> Thanks for all the feedback. After reading all the comments, I think I will not put special sauce with the duck confit.
> 
> Probably a drizzle of infused olive oil with thyme and garlic, really little because I would imagine confit will already be oily.
> 
> ...


wouldn't add any more oil to a confit dish, would go the other way with something acidic, maybe like a grape or cranberry mostardo. We do a porchetta'd pork belly with duck confit and rillettes sammy served with apple horseradish crème fraîche. As a main course with rocket and mustard greens dressed with a grape mignonette.

Good luck on the 14th,

Cheeers!

EDG


----------



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

> Originally Posted by *Josh71*
> 
> Probably a drizzle of infused olive oil with thyme and garlic, really little because I would imagine confit will already be oily.


Sounds like a bad idea IMHO. 


> Originally Posted by *Josh71*
> 
> I will try with a bit vinaigrette, that's a good idea!


Another bad idea IMHO.

Look, duck confit is amazing on its own. It doesn't need a sauce, it doesn't need oil, doesn't need butter, doesn't need a vinaigrette. IMO you're trying to dress up something that's already beautiful. No need. The only thing you can do is make it worse. Keep it simple. Focus on making the best duck confit you've ever made (even if it's your first duck confit) and drop the sauce. 


> Originally Posted by *Josh71*
> 
> It will be served with fresh cherry tomatoes and fresh green salad leaves, yes, loves the peppery arugula / rocket leaves.


I like that idea. Keep the seasoning light - I would go for a mediterranean style seasoning: S&P, olive oil and red wine vinegar, toss. If you want to go a tiny wee bit fancier, you could steep a tablespoon of finely minced shallots in the vinegar for a few minutes first (then leave the shallots in the dressing). Stay away from anything rich in your dressing (no yolks - no sugar - I wouldn't even use mustard). 


> Originally Posted by *Josh71*
> 
> And fondant potatoes, I want to try to make this, never had one


And I like that idea too. Potatoes and duck confit go together like tomatoes and basil. I would go for "pommes sarladaises" myself (THE classic duck confit side dish), or sauteed potatoes, or potatoes lyonnaises, or pommes boulangeres with onions... but fondant potatoes sounds great too. You could finely mince fresh parsley and sprinkle on top at the last minute.

Enjoy!! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


----------



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

French Fries said:


> Sounds like a bad idea IMHO.
> 
> Another bad idea IMHO.
> 
> ...


Thanks for another great feedback. And I will certainly follow the advice regarding leaving the duck confit alone.

I plan to use home sous vide (Annova) to make the duck confit because my oven is terrible at keeping steady low temperature.

Put the duck leg in a vacuum bag with duck fat (and thyme garlic).

Then sous vide for at least 6 hours at 75C (the method above is 82C).

Hopefully it would turn good!


----------



## everydaygourmet (Apr 4, 2012)

@Josh71, you got a crock pot?, I use a versa cooker which is basically a glorified slow cooker when I make confit @ home.

.




  








import from phone June 2013 2076.jpg




__
everydaygourmet


__
Jul 3, 2013












  








import from phone June 2013 2079.jpg




__
everydaygourmet


__
Jul 3, 2013












  








import from phone June 2013 2078.jpg




__
everydaygourmet


__
Jul 3, 2013












  








import from phone June 2013 2077.jpg




__
everydaygourmet


__
Jul 3, 2013


----------



## josh71 (Jan 15, 2015)

EverydayGourmet said:


> @Josh71, you got a crock pot?, I use a versa cooker which is basically a glorified slow cooker when I make confit @ home.


No, but I think my portable sous vide method in a vacuum bag should do fine


----------



## everydaygourmet (Apr 4, 2012)

@Josh71, agreed the vac method should be fine, it's such a PITA that we usually do a fair amount to either keep submerged in the duck fat of freeze. We use a cure of

house apple smoked salt and turbo sugar, wild fennel pollen, lavender and rosemary salt, juniper berries and black pepper overnight skin side down, next morning shallot, garlic, herbs de Provence and let set about 4 more hrs

Cheers!

EDG


----------

