Duck confit is a Gascon classic — a duck leg salt-cured, then poached slowly in duck fat until the meat pulls off the bone and the skin crisps in minutes under a broiler. Making it from scratch takes a day and a lot of rendered fat, which is why the good move is buying legs already confited by people who do it right. These independents ship the real thing, plus other prepared duck.
Published July 2026 · Updated 7 Jul 2026
D'Artagnan built its name on duck, and its confit is made from free-range Moulard duck legs, salt-cured and slow-cooked in duck fat, ready to crisp and serve. Founder Ariane Daguin has owned the company outright since 2005 and sources from independent farms. Refrigerated, shipped overnight.
Why it isn't on AmazonThis is the confit most American restaurants serve — the classic Gascon product from the purveyor that popularized it, not a grocery approximation.
See it at D'Artagnan →A duck farm on 200 acres in the Catskills since 1985, with an on-site kitchen making ready-to-eat charcuterie. Their duck leg confit is slow-cooked in duck fat and just needs reheating until the skin crisps. Whole ducks, breasts, and prepared duck too. Refrigerated, ships next-day.
Why it isn't on AmazonConfit made by the same farm that raises the ducks is about as short as the supply chain gets — you're buying it one step from the barn, not from a distributor.
See it at Hudson Valley Farms →The Hayward French charcuterie (since 1985) makes duck confit alongside its duck rillettes and mousse, so you can build a whole duck spread from one maker. Traditional method, made in California. Refrigerated, ships nationwide.
Why it isn't on AmazonA French charcutier confits duck as a matter of course — and buying the confit, rillettes, and mousse from one house means it's all made to the same standard.
See it at Fabrique Delices →This seat's open on purpose — we won't pad the list to hit a number. If you ship real duck confit & prepared duck direct, it's earned, not sold.
Add your brand →Confit (from the French confire, to preserve) is duck legs cured in salt and aromatics, then cooked slowly and submerged in duck fat at a low temperature until meltingly tender. Traditionally the legs were then stored in that fat, which sealed out air and preserved them for months. Today most confit is sold refrigerated and ready to reheat, but the low-and-slow-in-fat method is what defines it.
Wipe off most of the surrounding fat (save it — it's gold for potatoes), then place the legs skin-up in a hot oven, around 400°F, or in a skillet skin-down, until the skin is crackly and the meat is heated through, usually 15 to 20 minutes. Don't rush it in the microwave; you'll get hot meat but flabby skin. The crisp skin is the entire point.
Keep it. Rendered duck fat is one of the best cooking fats there is — roast potatoes in it, sauté greens, sear other meats, or start the next batch of confit. Strained and refrigerated it keeps for months, and frozen it lasts even longer. Throwing it out is the one real mistake with a confit leg.
On its own with crisp-roasted potatoes (cooked in the duck fat) and a sharp green salad to cut the richness. It's also the meat in a proper cassoulet, shredded into a hash, or pulled for tacos and sandwiches. A little acidity nearby — mustard, pickles, a squeeze of orange — balances the fat beautifully.
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