Duck confit with roasted rutabaga and balsamic sauce

Duck confit with roasted rutabaga and balsamic sauce

Making your own amazing New Year's Eve dinner this year? You should! This festive duck confit is super luxurious but surprisingly easy to prepare. Perfect with oven-roasted rutabaga and balsamic sauce. Ring in the new year in a higher state of low carb deliciousness!

Duck confit with roasted rutabaga and balsamic sauce

Making your own amazing New Year's Eve dinner this year? You should! This festive duck confit is super luxurious but surprisingly easy to prepare. Perfect with oven-roasted rutabaga and balsamic sauce. Ring in the new year in a higher state of low carb deliciousness!
USMetric
4 servingservings

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp 1 tbsp sea salt
  • 1 tbsp 1 tbsp dried sage or dried rosemary
  • 2 tbsp 2 tbsp dried parsley
  • 10 10 allspice berries
  • 5 5 peppercorn, whitepeppercorns, white
  • 1 1 bay leafbay leaves
  • 1 (4 oz.) 1 (110 g) yellow onionyellow onions
  • 2 2 garlic clovegarlic cloves
  • 1½ lbs 650 g duck legduck legs
  • 2¼ lbs 1 kg butter or ghee or duck fat
  • 1 lb 450 g rutabaga
Balsamic sauce
  • 1 cup 240 ml drippings from the meat /broth from the duck
  • 4 oz. (½ cup) 110 g (110 ml) cream cheese
  • 1 tbsp 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tbsp 1 tbsp tomato paste
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Instructions

  1. In a mortar, crush the spices together with the sea salt. Wipe the duck with kitchen paper and pat dry, then rub the spice mixture over the duck. Let sit for a while at room temperature.
  2. Fry the duck legs in plenty of butter or ghee for a few minutes. You can even skip this step if you want, but it adds an extra nice flavor and color.
  3. Put the duck and the gravy in the slow cooker. Add finely chopped onion and garlic, then pour over the butter, ghee, or duck fat, so the meat is completely covered. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
  4. Strain the cooking juices, set aside the onion, and pour into a glass jar. Cool quickly, so the fat solidifies, and the broth separates. Remove the fat with a spoon and save the broth for the sauce. Keep the fat in a jar so that you can use it for cooking later.
  5. Peel and slice the rutabaga into half-inch (1 cm) pieces. Brush with oil, salt, and pepper. Bake in the oven at 365 °F (185 °C) for 20 minutes or until they get soft.
  6. Bring the broth and cream cheese to a boil, stir in balsamic vinegar, mustard, and tomato paste. Salt and pepper to taste, add some more vinegar if needed. Simmer until the desired thickness of the sauce.
  7. Serve the duck with rutabaga and the balsamic sauce.

Tip

If you don't have a slow cooker, you could use a dutch oven and cook it on the stove on medium-high heat. It'll take about 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the thighs. You could also cook it in the oven at 260 °F (125 °C) after step 2.

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What did you think? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below!

7 comments

  1. Una
    You must be joking! 1kg of butter for four people. That is nearly £10 in money before you buy the duck and all the rest! And is it really necessary to use 1kg for small duck legs? Sounds very excessive to the point it sounds like another mistake in your recipes!
    Reply: #2
  2. Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor
    The butter/ghee is for frying. In step 2, it says this is optional.
  3. Susie
    Actually one needs all that fat for the confiting of the duck. However, it is reusable. And it doesn’t have to be butter!
  4. 1 comment removed
  5. Dayn
    Also, suddenly you’re talking about gravy... which gravy? Where did it come from? Have I missed anything?
    Reply: #6
  6. Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor

    Also, suddenly you’re talking about gravy... which gravy? Where did it come from? Have I missed anything?

    The gravy here is the pan juices from frying the duck.

  7. 1 comment removed
  8. ANDREW
    Sadly, this recipe is not DD's finest moment. We all know that butter plays an important part in keto and low-carb cooking but asking people to use 2.25 pounds of butter in a dish for 4 people is an absolute absurdity, even if some of it might be reusable (in dishes where the taste of duck fat wouldn't spoil the other flavours). And more than 6 hours cooking time isn't what most people are looking for, I'd suggest. I'm really surprised that this is the only duck recipe on DietDoctor as duck makes a really good keto/low carb choice. Maybe duck isn't a popular choice in the US? Duck, especially breast, fried in a little olive oil or butter for a few minutes, is a beautiful centrepiece for a main meal.
    Reply: #9
  9. Kerry Merritt Team Diet Doctor

    Sadly, this recipe is not DD's finest moment. We all know that butter plays an important part in keto and low-carb cooking but asking people to use 2.25 pounds of butter in a dish for 4 people is an absolute absurdity, even if some of it might be reusable (in dishes where the taste of duck fat wouldn't spoil the other flavours). And more than 6 hours cooking time isn't what most people are looking for, I'd suggest. I'm really surprised that this is the only duck recipe on DietDoctor as duck makes a really good keto/low carb choice. Maybe duck isn't a popular choice in the US? Duck, especially breast, fried in a little olive oil or butter for a few minutes, is a beautiful centrepiece for a main meal.

    Thanks for your feedback! Please note that the butter/ghee is for frying. In step 2, it says this is optional.

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