Ingredients

Check off ingredients as you go

Serves 6

• 6 duck confit legs (or goose)
• 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
• 2 finely minced shallots (frozen works too) or 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 glass of water (200ml/¾ cup) with 1 tsp veal stock (or meat broth)
• 1 tsp balsamic glaze
• 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) sweet potatoes
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 pinch of nutmeg
• breadcrumbs (or panko breadcrumbs)
• Salt, pepper

If you change the number of serving, consider adjusting cooking times!

If you find pre-made confit duck legs, you can skip the first step, shred them, and move straight to preparing the sweet potato mash.

Preparing the Duck Confit Legs

This step can be done the day before.

1. In a Dutch oven or large pot, arrange the duck legs and bake covered for 4 hours at 150-160°C (300-320°F), turning them occasionally. They’re ready when the bone comes off easily.

• If you prefer cooking without the oven, simply cook them over low heat, covered, until they’ve rendered most of their fat (this takes some time), turning them to brown the other side, until very tender (the bone detaches easily). Once the heat is off, remove most of the fat (keep 2 tbsp) and reserve this fat in a sterilized jar for another use.

Whatever you do, don’t throw away the goose or duck fat! It keeps for months in the refrigerator in a sterilized jar and you can use it for other recipes like confit gizzards or Sarladaise-style sautéed potatoes, for example. It’s delicious and will save you from having to buy it!

2. Remove the skin and bones from the legs and shred the meat (easier with your fingers). In a saucepan with a little goose fat, brown the minced shallot, then add the shredded duck with a glass of water mixed with 1 tsp veal stock and the balsamic glaze, parsley, and pepper. Let simmer to reduce the sauce for about ten minutes. When the consistency suits you (for me, smooth, neither too liquid nor too dry), spread in the baking dish.

Zero-waste tip for goose or duck skin: You can set the skins aside, cut them into strips and fry them with (or without) thinly sliced onion. You’ll have delicious crispy skin and fried onion chips, a delicious Ashkenazi Jewish specialty from Eastern Europe called gribenes.

Preparing the Sweet Potato Mash

Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them into pieces and place them in a steamer basket, set it over a pot with water and a few sprigs of rosemary in the water. Steam for about fifteen minutes. I prefer this steam cooking to boiling because it preserves vitamins and prevents the sweet potato from soaking up water like a sponge.

When the potatoes are tender, mash them in a bowl using a blender or food mill with a fine grid, add a drizzle of olive oil, salt (half a teaspoon), pepper, nutmeg, and a few sprigs of rosemary from the cooking water. You should get a nice smooth mash texture. If it’s too thick, add a tablespoon of cooking water, or more (careful not to make soup) until you get the right consistency. Taste to adjust seasoning if needed.

The Bonus Topping

If you like and have time, you can sauté mushrooms (preferably a mix: button, porcini, chanterelles, oyster) thinly sliced in a wok or hot pan with 1 minced garlic clove and 1 minced shallot, salt, pepper, and parsley. You’ll put this sauté on your parmentier when serving. It’s a nice touch that pairs beautifully with the parmentier.

Baking the Parmentier

Preheat oven to 210°C (410°F). Cover the shredded duck with the sweet potato mash, sprinkle with breadcrumbs, then bake on a rack for 20 minutes, possibly using the broiler setting for the last 5 minutes. Serve piping hot with the sautéed mushrooms and a nice green salad.

Tips and Variations

• For entertaining, you can also plate this parmentier in individual portions, in mini-cocottes for example.
• If you have some, you can mix the breadcrumbs with hazelnut powder, which will also be excellent.
• For a more classic version, you can of course replace the sweet potatoes with regular potatoes.
• If you prepare this parmentier ahead, I recommend making the confit, mash, and mushrooms without assembling them, only putting them in the dish on the day of serving before baking. Don’t forget that if it’s been in the refrigerator, you’ll need to bake for 30 minutes so it’s nice and hot.