Easy Garlic Confit Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What are the basics of confit? ›

Confit refers to the process of slow cooking and storing food in fat. Confit is a French word that means "preserved." In the confit method, meats are cooked in fat for a long time at low temperatures. This renders tough cuts like duck legs more tender, and when stored in duck fat in a cool place, they last all winter.

To confit, food must be cured in salt (when necessary) and slowly cooked in fats like duck fat, chicken fat, olive oil, or sugar syrup (most commonly used to confit fruit or citrus peels) at low temperatures.

Transfer garlic confit and the cooking oil to a clean heatproof container, cover with plastic, and refrigerate immediately. Refrigerated in its oil, the garlic confit can be kept for up to 2 weeks.

Use Low-Temperature Cooking: The key to safe garlic confit is to cook it at a low temperature. The oil should never reach a temperature below 250°F (121°C) to ensure that any potential botulinum spores are killed during the cooking process. If you follow the cooking instructions in this recipe, you will be alright.

Common choices include extra virgin olive oil, vegetable oil, or grapeseed oil. The choice of oil can influence the final flavor, so consider your preferences and the dish you plan to use the garlic confit in when selecting the oil.

Part 3: Slow-cooking (confit)

Slow-cook for 8 hours at 100°C / 210°F (80°C fan). I typically do this overnight. In an oven this low, I feel perfectly safe snoozing away! Remove from oven: This is what it looks like when it comes out of the oven.

Garlic confit will last up to 2 weeks in the fridge, and up to 3 months in the freezer. Refrigerate the garlic confit immediately after cooled. Freeze it with the oil or puree it and freeze it separately for up to 2 months. You can even freeze it into covered ice-cube trays for easy removal when you want some.

use confit for mashed potatoes or pasta, spread it on bread for sandwiches, or puree it into dips or dressings.

What is garlic confit? If you've never had garlic confit, it's basically a boatload of garlic cloves that are slowly simmered in some really good quality olive oil along with some fresh thyme, black peppercorns, red chili flakes, and bay leaves. That's it. It truly couldn't be easier.

Why Is My Garlic Confit Bitter? Caution must be taken when cooking garlic so that it is not overcooked. Garlic burns easily and when it has been cooked too long or on too high of a temperature, it will turn bitter.

Why did my garlic confit turn green? ›

It has to do with the garlic's age. Older garlic will build up larger quantities of chemical precursors than fresher garlic, thus both the region in which you buy your garlic and the specific markets in which you are purchasing it can affect how likely it is to form these blue-green compounds.

Consumption of excessive amounts of raw garlic, especially on an empty stomach, can cause gastrointestinal upset, flatulence, and changes in the intestinal flora. There have been reports of allergic dermatitis, burns, and blisters from topical application of raw garlic.

You won't be able to tell if it's dangerous, because it will still look, smell and taste the same. Commercially produced garlic-in-oil prod- ucts have been linked to two outbreaks of botulism; one in Vancouver in 1985 and the other in New York in 1989.

Health Risks Of Poorly Stored Homemade Garlic Confit

Unfortunately, botulism is a health risk to consider when making and storing garlic confit since it is a low-acid ingredient in a low-oxygen environment. Botulism is an illness that's borne from toxins created by bacteria growth and can be very dangerous.

To reduce the risk of botulism, the garlic in oil mixture should be refrigerated and used within four days. Garlic in oil should always be discarded after two hours at room temperature, even if salt and acids are present.

It's delicious! In general, Confit is not considered a very healthy way of cooking since it does involve putting a lot of fat into your body. So if you're watching your cholesterol or trying to cut back on fat intake, Confit may not be the best option for you.

The main difference between confit vs. sous vide lies in how the food is heated on the cooktop. With confit, food is immersed and cooked at low temperatures in fat, oil or syrup. With the sous vide method, ingredients are sealed in a vacuum-sealed bag and cooked in hot water.

The classic way to enjoy it is to simply warm it, either skin-side down in a pan with duck fat, or put it under the broiler for a few minutes until the meat is heated through and the skin is super crispy. Confit will add a dimension to just about any dish, but here are a few ideas for enjoying duck leg confit.

Add the vegetables to a pot or pan with spices and herbs like whole peppercorns, thyme, and rosemary. Fill the pot with enough duck fat or olive oil until vegetables, herbs, and spices are totally submerged. Cook over low to medium-low heat until the vegetables are fully cooked and tender.