← Nouns Cooking · French

Ingredients

• 4 confit duck legs (tinned or jarred)
• 4 shallots, finely chopped
• 2 cloves Garlic, chopped
• 2 sprigs Thyme, leaves picked
• 100 ml Red wine
• 150 ml chicken stock
• 2 tbsp Parsley, chopped
• 900 g floury potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 150 ml Milk, warmed
• 40 g Butter
• 60 g Comté or Gruyère, grated
• nutmeg, grated
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Warm the duck legs gently in a pan or low oven for 10 min until the fat melts. Lift them out, scrape off excess fat (save it), then pull the meat from the bones in small shreds, discarding skin and bones.
2. Boil the potatoes in salted water for 15–20 min until very tender. Drain, mash with the milk and butter until smooth, and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
3. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp of the duck fat in a frying pan over medium heat and soften the shallots and garlic for 5 min. Add the thyme and wine and bubble for 2 min, then add the stock and simmer for 5 min until mostly reduced.
4. Stir in the shredded duck and parsley and season with pepper (confit is already salty). Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan, 400°F).
5. Spread the duck in a buttered baking dish, cover with the mash and rough up the top with a fork. Scatter over the cheese.
6. Bake for 25 min until bubbling at the edges and golden on top. Rest for 5 min and serve with a green salad.

Tips

• Keep the leftover duck fat in the fridge: it makes the best roast potatoes.
• Check your stock is gluten-free if that matters to you.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

The Good Life France FrenchEntrée The Caterer (Rick Stein)