Duck legs salted overnight, cooked slowly in their own fat until tender, then fried crisp to serve.
What makes it confit de canard
Salted, with garlic and thyme, for a night or so first.
Cooked submerged in duck fat, very gently, for hours.
Crisped skin-down before serving.
Where it comes from
Confit comes from confire, to preserve. Before fridges, farms in the south-west killed their fattened birds in the cold months, salted the pieces, cooked them gently in the fat and packed them into stoneware pots under it, where they kept for months.
Goose was the older way; duck is far more common now. It's eaten crisped in a hot pan with potatoes fried in the same fat, and it's the backbone of cassoulet and garbure.
How it varies
Confit d'oie
The same with goose, the older tradition.
Gésiers confits
Duck gizzards done the same way, sliced warm over salad.