Gluten Free · Dairy Free
South West France
This duck confit version of a shepherd's pie is traditional in the South West of France. A simple peasant dish of preserved duck with minimal vegetables, topped with buttered and often cheesy mashed potatoes.
I add a bit more veggies, balance out the richness with a white wine reduction, and mix a parsnip and a little dairy-free feta into my mash to add complexity and a high note.
Ingredients
Duck & Vegetables
- 3 confit duck legs
- 1 cup white wine
- ¼ cup sherry or marsala (or if you don't have this, just add an extra ¼ cup of wine)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ tsp salt (confit duck is usually already salted, so less is better here)
- 2 carrots
- 6 large mushrooms
- 2 medium courgettes
- 1 medium onion
- ½ cup peas
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 4 tablespoons apple sauce
- 1 tsp herbes de Provence
- ¾ tsp ground coriander seed
- 1 pinch ground clove (about 1 clove)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 pinch fresh cracked black pepper
Mashed Potato
- 4–5 medium to large potatoes
- 1 parsnip
- 1 tablespoon dairy-free butter
- ½ tsp mustard
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ tsp salt
- Pinch of pepper
- 1 clove garlic
- ¼ cup dairy-free feta or grated cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F).
- Wash, peel and cook the potatoes, parsnip and garlic clove until the potato and parsnip are tender. Mash and mix with the butter, spices, mustard and olive oil. Optionally fold in ¼ cup of dairy-free feta or other cheese.
- Debone the cooked duck confit and cut the meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Wash and chop all the vegetables into small cubes.
- In a heavy-bottomed frying pan, start by sautéing the carrots with the herbs and spices for 3–4 minutes. Add the onions and courgettes, waiting for the onions to start to become transparent before adding the mushrooms and garlic.
- Add the apple sauce, mustard, wine and sherry. Heat for 2–3 minutes to burn off the alcohol, then add the chopped duck. Remove from the heat.
- Arrange the duck and vegetable mixture in an ovenproof dish. Spread the mashed potato mixture over the top.
- Put it in the oven for 30 minutes. At this point, depending on your oven, you might want to grill the top briefly for 1–2 minutes to brown the potato a little more.
Serve with a green salad and a light vinaigrette.
