Duck Confit 🦆 | 油封鸭

Peking Duck seems to be a well-known Chinese delicacy that is popular among foreign eaters as well as the locals. Except for the succulent duck meat and fresh vegetables, the sweet plum sauce going with them also contributes to the great taste.

After I came to Europe, I also fell in love with another duck dish: Confit de Canard, duck meat cooked in its own fat. It's a classic dish originated from the Gascony region in southwest France, where the famous town Bordeaux is. Gascony is like a foodie's paradise with so much great gourmet food. Unlike the creamy dishes simmered in butter in the north of the country, there's an age-old tradition of cooking in fat (in particular goose and duck fat) in this area.

Confit originally refers to preserving and slowly cooking food in any liquid such as fruits in sugar syrup. The duck or goose leg in the confit dish is usually cured in salt before being grilled or fried in its fat. The left fat can be used to roast vegetables like the mushrooms on my plate here. Roasted or fried potatoes are also common sides.

The duck confit in this post is from a hotel restaurant in Arcachon, a coastal town in the Gascony region. Enjoying the duck's tender meat and crispy skin is such an unforgettable experience! KFC says "we do chicken right", and I would say here they do duck right!😉

北京烤鸭世界闻名，很多人都爱吃。今天我来向大家介绍一道源于法国西南的经典名菜 —— 油封鸭，也非常美味。

因为以前没有冷冻技术，很多地方的居民都会通过腌肉腌菜来保存食物。油封鸭Confit de Canard也是这样，菜名里的confit在法语中就是“保存”的意思。法国西南地区盛产肥鸭，当地人先用盐腌制鸭肉，再把肉封在鸭子自身的油脂里低温慢煮，煮好后的鸭肉在油中隔绝空气封存，可以保鲜长达几个月甚至一年以上。

现在“油封”已经扩展成为一种烹饪方法，而非只为腌制保存肉类。鹅肉、猪肉等其他肉类或者土豆、蘑菇等也被拿来按此法烹制，广受欢迎。

我贴出照片里的油封鸭是在法国西南海滨小城Arcachon吃到的，肉质鲜嫩，鸭皮酥脆，配上蘑菇、薯条和沙拉，好吃到我恨不得再点一只鸭腿~！

因为临海，这边的大虾、牡蛎等海鲜也很新鲜美味，有机会可以尝试一下。

The shrimps here are also fresh and delicious:

The pretty hotel restaurant where we had food:
这家酒店餐厅很不错，食物好味，环境也很赞，在露天庭院晒着太阳吃着油封鸭简直太享受了！但是庭院里食客很多，我没好意思拍照。

Some beautiful flowers in the yard:
就拍了张院子里好看的小花花：

Here is another duck dish I had in Bali, Indonesia:
以前写过的在巴厘岛吃的脏鸭：

Dirty Duck Restaurant 🦆| 脏鸭馆的美食故事