Confit of carrots with bacon

A recipe from cooking-ez.com

For 4 people, you will need:

• 1 1 litre water
• 2 2 chicken stock cubes
• 3 1 kg carrot
• 4 1 onion
• 5 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 6 250 g belly (streaky) bacon
• 7 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 salt
• 9 pepper
• Total weight: 2,455 grams

Times:

Preparation	Cooking	Start to finish
20 min.	2 hours 15 min.	2 hours 35 min.

Step by step recipe

1	Prepare the stock by dissolving 2 chicken stock cubes in 1 litre water (hot). Set aside.
2	Peel, rinse and dry 1 kg carrots. Prepare and chop 1 onion.
3	Use a large casserole or pan that can go both on the hob and in the oven. Put on medium heat and pour in 1 tablespoon olive oil. When hot, lightly brown 250 g belly (streaky) bacon (cut into thin rashers) on both sides. Do this in batches and set aside. You will need one rasher of bacon (or slice of ham) per carrot.
4	You can use cured ham as well as, or instead of, the bacon.
5	After frying the bacon, add 3 tablespoons olive oil and the chopped onion. Salt and pepper, then leave to cook for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Turn off the heat. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C).
6	Wrap each carrot in a strip of bacon or ham and pack tightly in the bottom of the casserole.
7	Pour enough stock over to just cover the carrots.
8	Cook in the oven for one and a half to two hours (or longer), until the carrots are soft, melting even. Take the lid off after the first hour to allow the stock to reduce a little.
9	Serve with potato purée, for example, and pour a little of the reduced cooking stock over the top.

Remarks

Please note that if you are using cured ham instead of bacon, it may well be even saltier, so do be cautious with the seasoning - taste to make sure.

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