“Carnitas are my favorite taco in the universe,” says Rick Martinez. “My dad makes a classic pork version, but here I use luscious slow-roasted duck confit with crispy duck skin chicharrones cooked in pork fat. Same texture, same flavor...but extra extra, just like me.” Duck fat is delicious, but lard is cheaper and easier to find. Of course, if you happen to have duck fat lying around, feel free to use it. Just make sure to strain and use the fat left over from the cooked duck legs to make tortillas, roasted potatoes, or empanadas.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 12
Ingredients
Duck
Escabèche and Assembly
Preparation
Duck
Step 1
Prick skin on duck legs in several places with the tip of a paring knife. Rub legs with salt, working into flesh and skin. Transfer to a medium bowl or airtight container. Cover and chill at least 12 hours and up to 1 day.
Step 2
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 250°. Heat lard in a large saucepan over medium-high until an instant-read thermometer registers 250°.
Step 3
Scatter chiles, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cloves, achiote seeds, peppercorns, and oregano across the bottom of a large baking dish. Remove duck legs from bowl and brush off excess salt. Arrange legs, skin side down, over aromatics in baking dish. Nestle orange and garlic around legs, then pour warm lard over. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake legs 2 hours.
Step 4
Turn duck legs skin side up and nestle back into fat. Re-cover dish and continue to bake until meat is very tender and begins to pull away from the bones, 2–2½ hours longer.
Step 5
Let duck legs sit in fat until cool enough to handle (30–40 minutes), then transfer to a plate. Reserve 3 Tbsp. fat for frying duck skin and strain remaining fat through a fine-mesh sieve into an airtight container and let cool. Cover and reserve for another use (see recipe intro for ideas!).
Step 6
Remove skin from legs and set aside. Pull meat from bones, tearing into 1" pieces; discard bones and cartilage. Heat reserved 3 Tbsp. fat in a large nonstick skillet over medium and cook reserved duck skin, turning halfway through, until deep golden brown and crisp on both sides, 12–15 minutes total. Transfer chicharrones to paper towels to drain and let cool 5 minutes; crumble into small pieces.
Step 7
Do Ahead: Duck legs can be baked 3 weeks ahead. Transfer whole legs to a large nonreactive container; strain fat through a fine-mesh sieve over meat. Cover and chill. Bring to room temperature before removing skin and shredding meat.
Escabèche and Assembly
Step 8
Whisk lime juice, honey, and salt in a medium bowl until salt and honey are dissolved. Add radishes, onion, mint, tarragon, and 1 chile and toss to coat. Add remaining chiles as desired (depending on their heat and how spicy you like things).
Step 9
Top warm tortillas with some reserved meat, then radish escabèche and reserved chicharrones.
