Confit
A slow-cooking preservation method from southwestern France, using fat at low temperatures.
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Confit (from the French verb confire, meaning "to preserve," itself derived from the Latin conficere, "to prepare") is a method of slow cooking food in fat at low temperatures, originally developed as a preservation technique. Unlike deep frying, which occurs at 325–450 °F, confit is prepared at much lower temperatures, typically around 200 °F or even cooler. While the term in modern cuisine often refers to long, slow cooking in fat without any preservation intent—as seen in dishes like confit potatoes—its traditional application was essential for storing meat before refrigeration.
For meat confit, the process begins with salting the meat, which acts as a preservative. After salting, the meat is cooked slowly, submerged in its own rendered fat, never exceeding 85 °C. Once cooked, it is allowed to cool and is stored sealed in that fat, allowing it to last for several months or even years in a cool, dark place. This technique is a specialty of southwestern France, particularly in regions such as Toulouse, Dordogne, Béarn, and the Basque country. Classic confit meats include waterfowl like duck and goose, as well as pork.
The French refer only to duck and goose confits as true confits; other meats poached in duck or goose fat are considered en confit. Confit is a key ingredient in dishes such as cassoulet and garbure, and whole confit legs are often crisped in the oven or used to make rillettes. Beyond meat, the term also applies to fruit confit, which is whole fruit or pieces candied in sugar, and to condiment confits, such as garlic, onion, or chili confit used in Italian cooking.
Quick Facts
- Type
- Cooking technique
- Origin
- Southwestern France (Occitan region)
- Etymology
- From French 'confire' (to preserve), Latin 'conficere' (to make/prepare)
- Key ingredients
- Duck
- goose
- pork
- fruit
- garlic
- onion
- chili
- Preservation duration
- Several months or years when sealed and stored in a cool, dark place
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The word comes from the French verb confire (to preserve), which in turn comes from the Latin word (conficere), meaning 'to do, to produce, to make, to prepare.' The French verb was first applied in medieval times to fruits cooked and preserved in sugar. Confit is a specialty of southwestern France. The traditional meat for confit includes waterfowl such as goose and duck, as well as pork.
Varying forms of this delicacy thrive throughout southern France. 'Confit country' is the area of Occitan France, where goose fat is used for cooking, as opposed to olive oil, which is used in Provence, where olives were plentiful and thus cheap. Goose confit is associated with the Béarn and Basque regions with their classic specialties of cassoulet and garbure, hearty and earthy dishes of confit and beans. Saintonge and Brantôme feature duck confit, often with potatoes and truffles.
Reader's Guide
For meat, this method requires the meat to be salted as part of the preservation process. After salting and cooking in fat, confit can last for several months or years when sealed and stored in a cool, dark place. Confit of goose (confit d'oie) or duck (confit de canard) is usually prepared from the legs of the bird. The meat is salted and seasoned with herbs and slowly cooked submerged in its own rendered fat (never to exceed 85 C), in which it is then preserved by allowing it to cool and storing it in the fat.
Turkey and pork may be treated in the same manner. Meat confit is a specialty of the southwest of France (Toulouse, Dordogne, and other areas) and is used in dishes such as cassoulet. Confit preparations originated as a means of preserving meat without refrigeration.
In a restaurant context, confit is usually served after further preparation. Whole confit leg is baked to crisp the skin or added to a casserole-type dish. Confit duck leg is used to make rillettes.
Fruit confit is candied fruit (whole fruit, or pieces thereof) preserved in sugar. The fruit must be fully infused with sugar to its core; larger fruit takes considerably longer than smaller ones to candy. Thus, while small fruit such as cherries are confits whole, it is quite rare to see whole large fruit, such as melon confits since the time and energy involved in producing large fruit confits makes them quite expensive. Italian cooking uses several 'condiment confits', such as onion confit, chili confit, and garlic confit.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Confit (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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