Sunday, November 6, 2011

How To Make A Stock


Making a stock is one of those things that is so super easy that you will have yourself wondering why you didn't do it before.  So many soup recipes call for a stock, usually chicken, beef or turkey.  Now you can go and buy a pre-made stock at the store; or, you can use what you have on hand.  I make my stocks ahead of time and freeze them, ready to use when I need them.

I usually buy a rotisserie chicken every couple of weeks and once the meat has been used up, I save the bones and skin for this.  We also keep a small container of our onion tops and skins as well as garlic skins and bits of sweet peppers not used thoughout the week.  This really makes making a stock easy.

You take your chicken bones and vegetable bits and put them into a large cooking pot.  Put just enough water in to cover everything.  Put a lid on and bring it all to a boil.  Once boiling well, reduce the heat to minimum and let simmer for about an hour.  Let cool.  Once cooled, drain the stock into a large container, ready to freeze. 

I do the same thing with my turkey bones, just using a larger stock pot for the process and often get enough stock for 3 or more containers of stock. 

You can make a vegetable stock as well by putting in large chunks of veggies - onions, garlic, peppers, carrots and tomatoes work well for this.

There you go, super easy and a great way to use up everything you have on hand.

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