Confit (French) is a generic term for various kinds of food that have been immersed in a substance for both flavor and preservation. Sealed and stored in a cool place, confit can last for several months, and can be reheated to extend its useful life. Confit is one of the oldest ways to preserve food, and is a speciality of southwestern France.

Etymology

The word comes from the French verb confire (to preserve), which in turn comes from the Latin word (conficere), meaning "to do, to produce, to make, to prepare." The French verb was first applied in medieval times to fruits cooked and preserved in sugar Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ...

Meat confits

Confit de canard (duck leg confit)

Canned duck confit and cassoulet

The first kind of confit was preserves of meat in fat. (Excessive fat is discarded before consumption.) The process involves cooking a piece of meat in its own fat and storing it in a pot, covered in the same fat for preservation. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1113x1164, 254 KB) Summary Photograph made by Michael C. Berch (User:MCB) on 2006-02-06 Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1113x1164, 254 KB) Summary Photograph made by Michael C. Berch (User:MCB) on 2006-02-06 Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2560x1920, 2116 KB) Copyright © 2006 David Monniaux File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): French cuisine Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2560x1920, 2116 KB) Copyright © 2006 David Monniaux File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): French cuisine Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera... Cassoulet is a rich slow-cooked bean stew or casserole originating in the southwest of France, containing meat (typically pork sausages, mutton, or goose), and white haricot beans. ... Mortal Kombat character, see Meat (Mortal Kombat). ... Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and largely insoluble in water. ...

Perhaps the most common examples of confit are confit d'oie (goose) and confit de canard (duck), in which poultry is macerated in herbs and salt, cooked in savory broth or fat, and then preserved in rendered fat. Such confits are a specialty of the southwest of France (Toulouse, Dordogne etc.) and are used in refined versions of dishes such as cassoulet. Although confit of goose or duck are now considered somewhat luxurious products, these dishes were used by peasants as a means to store meats for periods of time without refrigeration. Look up goose in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Duck confit is a French dish made with duck legs. ... Subfamilies Dendrocygninae Oxyurinae Anatinae Aythyinae Merginae Duck is the common name for a number of species in the Anatidae family of birds. ... Macerating refers to softening or breaking into pieces with liquid. ... New city flag (Occitan cross) Traditional coat of arms Motto: (Occitan: For Toulouse, always more) Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country Region Midi-Pyrénées Department Haute-Garonne (31) Intercommunality Community of Agglomeration of Greater Toulouse Mayor Jean-Luc Moudenc  (UMP) (since 2004) City Statistics Land... Dordogne (Occitan: Dordonha) is a department in central France named after the Dordogne River. ... Cassoulet is a rich slow-cooked bean stew or casserole originating in the southwest of France, containing meat (typically pork sausages, mutton, or goose), and white haricot beans. ...

Fruits confits

Fruits confits are fruits (or pieces thereof) preserved in sugar. The fruit must be fully infused with sugar up to its core; larger fruits take considerably longer than smaller ones to prepare. Thus, while small fruits such as cherries are confites whole, it is quite rare to see whole large fruits, such as melons, confits, and when they are available, large fruits confits are quite expensive. For other uses, see Fruit (disambiguation). ... Magnification of grains of sugar, showing their monoclinic hemihedral crystalline structure. ... “Cherry tree” redirects here. ... Binomial name Cucumis melo L. The melon is the fruit and plant of a typically vine-like (climber and trailer) herb that was first cultivated more than 4000 years ago (~ 2000 BC) in Persia and Africa. ...

Small fruits confits, such as cherries, are traditionally used as decorations on elaborate cakes. In French, the expression la cerise sur le gâteau ("the cherry on the cake") is used figuratively to mean some kind of desirable, but not indispensable, additional feature or finishing touch. An equivalent saying in English would be "the icing on the cake", or "the cherry on top". This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

External links

• French menu terms
• What is Confit?
• Basic recipe for Confit