CONSERVED MEATS

Confit de canard is the wonderfully succulent and flavoursome duck that is synonomous with the South West of France. Consumed in quantity by the lucky residents there, washed down with red wine, it contributes to the excellent quality of life which leads to local people living to ripe old ages and irritating doctors who find such a diet politically incorrect.

Yes, you ask, but what exactly is it? Well, the fattening up of ducks and geese for the excellent foie gras produces very meaty birds. In the old days, before the advent of refrigerators, the ducks and geese would be cooked to traditional recipes and then placed in crocks and covered with the rendered fat to preserve them - nowadays, of course, people use tins and every small town has somewhere where you can tin your own conserves.

Whenever you feel like some duck, you just took it out and heated it up - the best way is on a rack in the oven so that all the fat is drained off, and you are left with wonderful, succulent and tasty meat!

Remember, these are big birds. One leg (cuisse) is a good meal. A wing (ail) of duck which includes part of the breast is, according to our supplier, enough for two people (though in our family some of us can demolish a wing unaided!) Manchons, literally 'bits', and ailerons, pinions, correspond more to the idea of wings as in chicken wings in the UK; they are the bony parts of the wing and make an excellent snack (2 or 3 per person depending on your appetite).

All conserves are guaranteed for three years, and come from birds raised exclusively in SW France.

We deeply regret we cannot yet send to the United States - we have tried getting in touch with the Dept of Agriculture but so far they have not returned our calls!

DISCOUNTS are available for bulk orders - consult us.

Order now or go to Secure ordering form

We can offer these foods NOW direct from the manufacturer. Use the form below to order your confit or send us a comment. Note: we haven't got our shopping cart software up and running yet but you can use the form below to order or, if you know what you want, you can go to our secure ordering form. The prices are EXCLUSIVE of post and packaging.

POSTAGE & INSURANCE: Postage is calculated by weight. Items will be sent by airmail unless you specify otherwise. NB: express is very expensive. If your package comes to more than 2 kilos it is sent automatically by recorded delivery EXCEPT to N America where they do not believe in such a service. OUTSIDE N America if you tick the insurance box for items less than 2 kilos they will be sent by recorded delivery. The extra charge is 24 FF. N American clients who want insurance should tick the insurance box whatever the weight. The extra cost is 39 FF upto a value of 500 FF of merchandise and 2.50 FF for each 500FF thereafter.

PAYMENT: The easiest way to pay is by credit card: we accept VISA and MASTERCARD. You can Email us your credit card number or, if you prefer, fax us on: +33 (0) 5 59 38 99 10. Another way is to send French franc cheques to: 123Voyage, c/o Hotel du Vieux Pont, 64390 Sauveterre de Bearn, France. or to transfer the money direct by SWIFT - ask us for bank account details. Our phone number for inquiries is: +33 (0) 5 59 38 99 00. (Callers from outside France use the international code of 33 and do NOT put in the 0)

Customers are responsible for settling their own custom charges where they apply.