Easy Instant Pot Duck Confit Recipe (2024)

A typical duck confit recipe takes hours to prepare and requires a tub of rendered duck fat. This Instant Pot duck confit recipe is much easier and faster. Plus, the duck legs cook in their own fat, so there’s no need to purchase duck fat separately.

A Duck Confit Recipe that Doesn’t Take All Day

I love duck confit and I’ve made it the traditional way—covered in duck fat and simmered all day on the stove. I’ve even made it using a slow cooker and olive oil. But now that I’ve discovered this Instant Pot method, I’ll never go back. I’ll also get to eat a lot more of my beloved duck confit.

The Duck Legs Cook in their Own Fat

One of my favorite things about Instant Pot duck confit is that you don’t need to add duck fat. This means you don’t have to buy an expensive tub of the stuff. The fat from the duck legs renders as they cook and the meat ends up cooking in that melted duck fat. It’s genius.

By the way, duck legs are usually quite affordable. I buy them at my local supermarket for around $5 per pound. You can order them online from Maple Leaf Farms.

What Does Confit Mean?

Confit (pronounced con-fee) comes from the French word confire meaning “to preserve.” Confit refers cooking food slowly, usually immersed in fat, in order to preserve it. When confit-ing meat, the meat is generously salted to aid in preservation.

Duck confit is made by curing duck (often a whole duck) in salt and then cooking it slowly in its own rendered fat. The result is very tender meat that is infused with salty, meaty flavor.

Dry Brine the Duck Legs

Curing or brining the duck legs for at least 24 hours before you cook them is an essential step. The duck legs get generous seasoning with salt and pepper. You can add herbs like bay leaves, thyme sprigs, rosemary sprigs, juniper berries, makrut lime leaves, and/or smashed garlic cloves.

The seasoned duck legs cure in the refrigerator for 24 to 72 hours (the longer the better). This infuses the meat with flavor while also drawing moisture out, which makes the cooked meat incredibly tender.

I sear the duck legs, starting with the skin side down, before pressure cooking until they are golden brown and crisp. This helps them to begin to give up their fat. This also gives the skin that beautiful golden brown hue.

Then they cook in the pressure cooker, with no added liquid, for a total of 60 minutes. The end result is perfection.

You can store the legs in their own fat in the refrigerator. To serve, just scrape off the fat and sear them in a hot skillet to crisp up the skin.

How can you pressure cook them without adding liquid?

I have used this method of making duck confit in the Instant Pot many times and it works perfectly. The duck legs release a fair amount of water as they cook, so you don’t need to add any additional liquid to create the steam or pressure.

If you do get a burn message, it probably means that your duck legs did not have a lot of moisture in them. To fix it, release the pressure, open the pot, and add 1/4 to 1/2 cup water or broth. Seal the pot again and reset to pressure cook.

What to serve with Duck Confit

There are a million recipes on the internet for how to make duck confit, but lots of people still wonder what to serve with duck confit and how to prepare it for serving.

My favorite way to serve Insant Pot Duck Confit is to sear it in a cast-iron skillet to crisp up the skin and then top it with a spiced pomegranate glaze.

Duck confit is also delicious added to salads. I like to use crisp greens and a bright vinaigrette, like one made with sherry vinegar, for textural and flavor contrast.

You can serve the whole legs warmed in a skillet and drizzled with a wine or fruit-based reduction. For Thanksgiving, I’ve served it this way with Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce or Bourbon Cranberry Sauce and Green Bean Stuffing Casserole, Potatoes au Gratin, and Air Fryer Yorkshire Pudding on the side.

Or try using it as a filling for enchiladas or tamales, or to top this easy homemade pizza with store-bought dough from Jenna at Sip Bite Go.