The culinary term ‘confit’ comes from the French verb confire which means ‘to preserve.’  It involves slowly cooking food, surrounded by fat or oil, until super tender and insanely decadent. The most common forms of confit are duck confit and garlic confit, but you can preserve any meat or vegetable in this way.

This amazing grilled lamb chop recipe involves a ‘confit’ of thinly sliced fennel flavored with garlic in olive oil. The fennel slowly cooks over low heat until caramelized and very tender, and is served on top of grilled chops that are flavored with ground fennel seeds and crushed red pepper flakes.  The confit also includes a bright pop of flavor that comes from lemon zest, lemon juice and the earthy taste of chopped, fresh oregano.  I served these lamb chops with the fennel confit with a side of green beans gremolata, herbed spaghetti squash with chickpeas, and a lovely Cabernet Sauvignon from California.

Tagged: confire, confit, crushed fennel seeds, crushed red pepper flakes, fennel confit, fennel fronds, fennel seeds, Fine Cooking, Fine Cooking magazine, fresh oregano, garlic, grilled lamb, grilled lamb chops, lamb, lamb chops, lamb rib chops, lamb with fennel, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, preserving