A magret de canard is the breast of a duck that has undergone the ecstasies and pains of being force-fed with corn-maize so as to produce foie-gras. Magret derives from the word maigre, meaning the lean meat of the bird.
Although the goose, increasingly seldom to be found, is undoubtedly the monarch of the farmyard (la basse-cour) , its place is gradually being usurped by the duck, which is easier to rear, needing only two feeds a day instead of the three prescribed for the goose when it is prepared for the ultimate sacrifice. Whole ducks are not very often seen even at market, because the bird so easily joints itself into manageable pieces with which to make confit , abundantly sold sous-vide, enabling the consumer to keep the packets for weeks at a time and, coming from a reputable source, can be nearly as good as confit made at home.
Other duck recipes appear in the chapter headed La Basse-Cour
