John Torode's duck confit with braised lentils

Name: John Torode's duck confit with braised lentils
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients: 1 tsp cumin seeds dry roasted; 1 tbsp coriander seeds dry roasted; 100g rock salt; a small bunch thyme; 3 juniper berries crushed (look in the spice section); 1 clove garlic crushed; 6 duck legs; about 700g goose fat or duck fat (look for it in tins or jars); 2 bay leaves; 1 tsp black peppercorns; olive oil; 2 red onions finely chopped; 1 stalk celery finely chopped; 1 carrot finely chopped; 3 cloves garlic crushed; a handful of leaves thyme; 1 tbsp red wine vinegar; 300g Puy lentils; 5 tomatoes quartered; a handful flat-leaf parsley chopped

John Torode

Published: December 19, 2014 at 2:27 PM

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Serves 6

A little effort

Total time: 3 hrs and 30 mins

+ overnight salting

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This may take a little longer than your average recipe, but John Torode's duck confit is well worth the wait. Most of the work is done well in advance, making this a great dinner-party option.

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Ingredients

Nutrition

1 tsp cumin seeds

dry roasted
1 tbsp coriander seeds

dry roasted
100g rock salt
a small bunch thyme
3 juniper berries

crushed (look in the spice section)
1 clove garlic

crushed
6 duck legs
about 700g goose fat or duck fat

(look for it in tins or jars)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns

Braised lentils

olive oil
2 red onions

finely chopped
1 stalk celery

finely chopped
1 carrot

finely chopped
3 cloves garlic

crushed
a handful of leaves thyme
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
300g Puy lentils
5 tomatoes

quartered
a handful flat-leaf parsley

chopped

Nutrition: per serving

kcal917
fat69.4g
saturates18.8g
carbs31.5g
fibre6.4g
protein43.7g
salt0.89g

Method

step 1

Start the day before. Crush the spices lightly and mix with the salt, thyme, juniper berries and garlic. Rub the mixture over the duck legs and leave for 24 hours, turning twice.
step 2

Heat the oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Wipe the duck well with kitchen paper (don’t wash) and pat dry. Cover with goose fat, Add the bay and peppercorns and cook for about 3 hours, or until the meat is almost falling away from the bone. Leave to cool in the fat and chill.
step 3

To make the lentils, heat a slug of oil in a heavy pan and gently sweat the veg, garlic and thyme until just soft. Add the red wine vinegar and lentils. Cover with water then bring to a gentle simmer. Add the tomatoes and simmer very gently until tender with a little bite. Stir the parsley through.
step 4

When you want to serve the duck, heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Take the legs out of the fat, scraping most of it away. Put them skin-side up on a roasting tray, then cook for 30-40 minutes until crisp and golden. Serve the duck legs with the lentils.

Authors

John Torode

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