Confit

Can we get maybe a how to video or something in the recipes section about confit? I've been thinking about it and since its just a means of preservation there is obviously more to it then just doing duck. What about lets say tomatoes or fennel or something? I wonder about doing it in a pressure cooker? I have to say, as a third year cook apprentice this site definitely inspires me to work cleaner, faster, more organized and just all around better which recently I know has been shining through at work. As such I am asking the Chef Steps community to give me a hand with this. I may work at an Italian restaurant but I am sooo not above confit cherry tomatoes on the vine to garnish a pasta or chicken dish with!

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Brendan_Lee_56950

I like to do cherry tomatoes confit. They are super soft on the inside, almost jam like but hold their shape well, pretty great as a garnish. I usually bag them whole with some basil and garlic and 100g olive oil and cook anywhere between 60-63C for 2-4 hours. I use a temp range because I usually just throw them in with whatever protein I'm using, which is usually pork so it goes in somewhere around 62-63C.

The tomatoes in here were done with this process.

Samuel_68313

I would imagine that pressure cookers get a little too hot really to confit most things, with a few exceptions though, for obvious reasons SV is the best tool.

I agree though, I would love a few basic guides about what foods confit especially well and what makes a food a great candidate for confit. Things I have tried personally and had really nice results with are:

- MC confit garlic in a pressure cooker

- Charlotte potatoes in duck fat

- Cherry tomatoes in olive oil

- Pearl onions in olive oil

- Chantenay carrots in goose fat

Samuel_68313

If you prick the cherry tomato with a cocktail stick then the skin does not tend to split as much.

Brendan_Lee_56950

I can't really imagine many things that wouldn't be good cooked this way. the only thing I can see being a problem is foods that tend to oxidize quickly (but could be solved with a blanch and shock process), and maybe fruits with skins/peels that could impart a bitter flavor or are inedible. I bet the addition of amylase and pectin could make for some interesting products as well.

Samuel_68313

I tried red peppers a while back and found the texture ended up exceptionally greasy. Aside from that most of what I have tried has worked.

Brendan_Lee_56950

I wonder if compressing porous veg like that before the confit process would make that less likely to happen