Soup stock is easy to make, doesn’t take much of your time and tastes better than any store bought brands
Every time you roast a chicken or turkey or purchase a rotisserie chicken from the store, don’t throw away the carcass, legs, thighs and wing bones! Put them in a zip top freezer bag, label and date it then freeze. When you have 3 or 4 chicken carcasses, or it’s Thanksgiving, it’s time to make soup stock.
Every time you cut up an onion, trim celery and carrots, have some wilted celery stalks, and parsley stems, add them to another zip top bag and freeze them so you have all the veggies available when you’re ready to make stock
What’s a Bouquet Garni?
A Bouquet Garni is a bundle of herbs that is added to your stock to give them a subtle herbal flavor and aroma. The classic French bouquet garni contains fresh parsley (mostly stems), fresh thyme sprigs and bay leaves. You can tie them together with butcher’s twine or just add them to the pot with all the veggies and bones. They will be strained out in the end anyway!
Start with COLD water, uncovered cooking and slow heating
According to “On Food and Cooking” by Harold McGee, the cold start and slow eating allow the soluble proteins to escape the solids and coagulate slowly that can easily be skimmed off. It also keeps your finished stock clear. You want to keep it uncovered the entire time to allow the water to evaporate and cool the surface. It starts the process of concentration that will give the stock a more intense flavor. Don’t try to rush the process by boiling the stock. The stock will be cloudy and less flavorful. Let it gently simmer!
Do you need a “stock pot” to make stock?
A “stock pot” is a sturdy flat-bottom pot with straight sides and is the best vessel to make stock. Look for a stock pot with handles that are sturdy and easy to grip. A 12- to 16-quart stock pot is ideal for home use. It needs to be tall to fit that chicken or turkey carcass, leg bones, thigh bones and wings plus all the veggies.
Turkey or Chicken Stock
Ingredients
- Chicken or Turkey carcass and leg and thigh bones
- Chicken or Turkey neck, gizzard and heart
- 1 medium yellow onion Quartered
- 2-3 carrots Ends removed, peeled and rough chopped
- 2-3 ribs of celery washed and rough chopped
- Bouquet Garni Sprig of fresh thyme, fresh parsley stems, 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Add the chicken or turkey carcass plus any leg, thighs and wings to a tall stock pot
- Add the bouquet garni and enough COLD water to cover
- Bring it slowly to a gentle simmer and keep it there, uncovered, for 3 to 4 hours, skimming off fat and scum from time to time. DO NOT let it boil!
- Strain the stock through a colander into a large bowl or pot. Discard all the solids
- Cool the stock as quickly as possible before refrigerating-ideally 1½ hours. One simple way is to fill a zip top bag with ice cubes, close and put into the cooling stock. Add more ice as it melts in the bag. Once the stock has reached a temperature around 50℉ you can refrigerate until chilled through. **NOTE: Never put hot stock in the refrigerator or freezer. The heat of the the stock will raise the temperature of the fridge and compromise the other foods
- Once the stock is completely chilled you can easily remove any fat that has congealed on the top of the stock
