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How to Make Chicken Stock at Home | thecookspyjamas.com
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Kitchen Basics: How To Make Homemade Chicken Stock

This is not so much a recipe as a guideline. Use whatever vegetables you have (except brassicas). I will use about 3 - 4 chicken carcasses in my 10L stock pot, but I also throw in around 6 chicken wings to boost the chickeney goodness.
The white wine in the recipe assists in releasing the minerals from the chicken bones. The alcohol will burn off during the long cooking time and will not be present in the finished stock. However, if you don't want to use wine, you can use vinegar. Personally I find that vinegar taints the finished stock, but some people prefer it. The stock will be fine without either ingredient.
I recommend you make as much stock as you can and freeze it. Stock will keep in the fridge for about five days. You can keep it for longer in the fridge if you bring it back to the boil, it is far easier to freeze it. I freeze stock in various size containers to accommodate different recipe requirements: 1L, 500ml and 250ml
Calories:
Author: Tania @ The Cook's Pyjamas

Ingredients

  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil or ghee
  • 2 onions roughly chopped
  • 2 medium carrots roughly chopped
  • 2 - 3 stalks celery roughly chopped
  • 3 - 4 chicken carcasses
  • 6 chicken wings
  • Handful parsley stalks
  • 2 leaves bay
  • 1 teaspoon peppercorns
  • 6 cherry tomatoes or 1 tomato
  • 1 Tablespoons large glass of white wine or 2 white wine vinegar
  • Water to cover

Instructions

  • In a large pot, sauté the onions, carrots and celery over a medium - high heat for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables have started to soften and take on some colour.
  • Add the remainder of the ingredients.
  • Fill the pot with cold water. I usually fill it to about 2 cm below the brim of the pot.
  • Place the pot over a medium - high heat and bring to a gentle simmer.
  • Turn the heat to low, partially cover the pot with a lid and allow to blip away for as long as possible. I allow it to simmer for at least 6 - 8 hours.
  • When you are ready, strain the stock into another pot through a fine sieve to remove the bones and vegetables.
  • Allow the stock to cool, then portion and freeze as required.

Notes

I freeze parsley stalks left over from other recipes, then throw these in the stock pot. If you don't have stalks, just use a small bunch of parsley instead.
You can roast the bones prior to making the stock to increase the depth of flavour. I don't usually do this as I find it time consuming, but I do use leftover carcasses and bones from roast chicken dinners. You can also brown the chicken wings in the pot prior to sautéing the vegetables if you are looking to develop a deeper flavour. Again I don't do this due to time constraints.
Some people keep a stock bag in their freezer, and collect vegetable cut offs from other meals that can be used in the stock pot. I don't, as our chickens get all our leftovers, but it is a good idea if you have space.