Rabbit Leg Confit
Yield
makes 4 legs
RECIPE Ingredients
- 4 Rabbit Legs
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 4 cups Duck Fat
- 1 shallot, peeled and halved
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 3 bay leaves
- 8 cloves
- About 12 whole black peppercorns
- 4 whole star anise pods
- 6 sprigs thyme
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- Lemon wedges, for squeezing
Recipe notes
Simple to make, our flavorful rabbit confit recipe is great on its own and makes a base for other recipes like Buttermilk Fried Rabbit and Easy Rabbit Rillettes.
RECIPE Preparation
- Place rabbit legs in a non-reactive dish and sprinkle with salt; let stand for about 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.
- In a small Dutch oven, melt duck fat over medium heat. When completely melted, add shallot, garlic, bay, cloves, peppercorns, star anise, thyme, and rosemary.
- Remove rabbit and brush off salt. Place rabbit in the warm duck fat. Bring mixture to a bare simmer then place in the oven. Cook until rabbit is completely tender, almost falling off the bone, about 3 hours.
- Remove rabbit legs to a clean, sealable container. Strain duck fat, discard aromatics. Pour strained duck fat over confit and store covered in the refrigerator until needed. (Confit will keep up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.)
- When ready to serve, remove confit from the fat (wiping away excess) and heat through under a broiler, in a heavy skillet on the stove, or on a grill.
Recipe tips: cooked confit can be vacuum sealed and frozen for up to 1 year. Try rabbit confit shredded over a salad, tossed in pasta, or tucked in a sandwich. Duck fat is one of the few fats that can be reused again and again without degrading. Just strain the fat using a coffee filter set in a fine mesh sieve and store in an airtight container in the fridge.