Faced with the remains of a supermarket pre-roasted chicken in the refrigerator this morning, I decided to make stock. After picking most of the meat from the bones (this will be used for another meal), I placed the bones in a stockpot with some scraps I had saved in the freezer (from cleaning multipacks of chicken breasts - I trim off cartilage and tidy them up before portioning and freezing them). I added a bay leaf, some chopped up onion, celery and carrot, a sprinkling of coriander seeds, some parsley stems and some dried herbs (thyme would be ideal but I could not find any in my pantry so I used poultry seasoning instead). I then added cold water to cover by just about an inch, and set the pot on the stove over low heat. The water is allowed to come to a simmer and then the heat reduced to maintain it. It simmered for about 2 hours. I prefer 3, but time was a little short. At the end of the simmer, I removed the bones and strained out the vegetables using 2 sieves, the second having the smallest holes. Cheesecloth would have been even better but I am out...
The stock is then cooled rapidly (I put cold water and ice cubes in the sink, pour the stock into a metal bowl and sit the bowl in the water, stirring the stock occasionally. Once cooled, it can be portioned into suitable containers (I use quart yogurt pots with lids) and refrigerated. After a few hours, the fat should have settled on the top. Remove and freeze until needed.
This stock is way tastier than canned chicken broth, but has far less sodium (almost none), so make sure you check the seasoning when you use it, and add more salt if needed. It is great in risottos, soups, sauces, stews - anything requiring a liquid where a chicken flavor would be appropriate.
Note that starting with cold water, heating gently and not stirring are all techniques that reduce the cloudiness of stock.
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