Confit in a zip bag in a water bath
#0040 Food & cooking
Fact rank
B
The safe-cooking criteria are confirmed in public-health material; no source was found for the temperature range of confit
Wow rank
A
A dish defined by submerging in fat, made with almost no fat
Usefulness
A
Possible with a home pot and a bag, but the bag manufacturer does not recommend this use, so not rated S
Verification: Supported by evidence
AI verification reports the evidence it found; it does not guarantee that a claim is true.
Confit (meat or fish cooked slowly in low-temperature fat) can be made without filling a pot with oil: put the ingredients and a little oil in a sealed bag and cook it in a water bath. It takes far less oil and is easier to clean up.
Why
What matters in confit is keeping the fat at a low temperature, not how much fat there is. A water bath cannot go above boiling, so it is steadier than heating oil directly. The bag clings to the food, so a fraction of the oil is enough to cover it.Evidence
Primary Sumida City public-health notice on low-temperature cooking. As heating equivalent to 75°C for 1 minute at the centre of the meat it lists 70°C 3 min, 69°C 4 min, 68°C 5 min, 67°C 8 min, 66°C 11 min, 65°C 15 min and 63°C 30 min link
Secondary Remarks by the bag manufacturer (Asahi Kasei Home Products), 2019. Freezer bags are heat-resistant to 100°C and may melt if they touch a heat source. They are not completely airtight, so immersing the bag in water may let water in or let the contents leak link
Notes and limits
The bag manufacturer does not recommend immersing the bag in hot water at all (heat-resistant to 100°C, melts on contact with a heat source, not completely airtight so water may get in). If you try it, it is at your own risk: keep the bag off the bottom and sides of the pot and do not let the water boil. Squeeze out as much air as possible. Cook chicken or duck until the centre reaches 75°C for at least 1 minute (or an equivalent such as 70°C for 3 minutes), and check the temperature at the centre of the meat, not of the water.
Derivations
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