Techniques

The confits, or conserves, of southwestern France are made with portions of duck, goose, pork or poultry giblets. The meat is first salted to pickle it lightly and draw out the moisture, then it is gently cooked in fat until it falls off the bone. Lastly it is sealed in its own cooking fat. Confits are indispensable to bean cassoulets, soups such as garbure, and other winter dishes with lentils and beans. Confit needs several weeks to mellow. When consuming a jar of confit little by little, keep the remaining pieces of meat covered with more melted fat.