Confit de Canard

1. Start by sprinkling the duck legs heavily with coarse salt. Bruise the juniper berries and the pepper with a mortar and crush the garlic cloves.

2. Put the duck legs and all the spices in a large and sturdy plastic bag and place the bag in the fridge for at least 24 hours.

3. Remove the legs from the bag (after 24 hours) and wipe most of the salt off the legs. Melt the duck fat in a large soup pan and place the legs in the fat. They need to be covered completely.

4. Heat the pan; it must NOT boil. If it bubbles every so often, that is okay, but do not let it come to a boil. Leave to simmer for 3 hours. Stick a skewer in one of the legs to test the meat; if it is not soft enough, add 10 minutes to the cooking time and repeat the proces.

5. Leave to cool and store in the fridge for at least 3 days or up to a week to develop the flavour. Again, make sure the meat is completely covered by fat.

6. To serve, take the legs out of the fat and place them on an oven tray. Place them in a hot oven (about 230 degrees C) and bake them for about 20 minutes until crisp and brown.

Serve with some potatoes fried in duck fat and a green salad.