Chicken Stock

[mkayahara]

If you were just asking, then I guess the answer I would give is: risotto. (Among other things.) I mean, yes, water can be used to great effect in some preparations, but having a neutral stock is extremely useful, even for home cooks. It's great for pan sauces, too, where you want the mouthfeel of stock, without necessarily wanting the flavours associated with a dark stock. I would say I use light chicken stock the way restaurants use light veal stock, since chicken is a lot easier for me to source.

[Emily_R]

I agree that there is a use for light stock -- I find that in certain soups -- often vegetable or legume based -- I want the body and some of the flavor that comes from chicken stock, but I don't want it to wind up tasting like chicken soup...

[Bjs229]

IMHO chicken skin infuses a ton of flavor. I prefer non roasted. I saw it mentioned earlier, I love using the feet as well. As far as intensity, you can always use water to dilute.

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[OliverB]

anything that's left over from a roast chicken goes in the pot, with not much thought at all. It's all good :-)

[thock]

If you were just asking, then I guess the answer I would give is: risotto. (Among other things.) I mean, yes, water can be used to great effect in some preparations, but having a neutral stock is extremely useful, even for home cooks. It's great for pan sauces, too, where you want the mouthfeel of stock, without necessarily wanting the flavours associated with a dark stock. I would say I use light chicken stock the way restaurants use light veal stock, since chicken is a lot easier for me to source.

I agree. I have a couple of pounds of chicken feet that I'm going to make stock out of, just for that reason. Sometimes, I just want the body, without the flavor. Without adding powdered gelatin. If that makes me weird, so be it. I've been called weird about a lot of thngs, so one more won't hurt.

[ScottyBoy]

Nothing wrong with using something just for texture my friend.

[Shalmanese]

I don't get people's aversion to powdered gelatin. Somehow, kosher salt and white sugar are ok, white vinegar is somewhat marginalized and MSG & powdered gelatin are considered evil, industrial products.

[thock]

No aversion to powdered gelatin, here. It's just more of a PITA to use, for me, than popping open a jar of home-canned stock. No need to wait for it to bloom, etc. Plus, I hardly keep it around.

And frankly, I'm a geek. I LIKE extracting my own gelatin from the source, as it were.

[jayt90]

It is disappointing to see serious home cooks using these products, which have absolutely no relationship to Escoffier or even Ruhlman.

I use chicken carcasses from an Asian store @ $1/lb. I'll put that stock, (just 45 min. in a PC,) against any commercial product.

[janeer]

I generally agree with jayt90, except I don't use a PC, but the glacé product looks worth trying. But you can make good stock with bargain wings, thighs, old hens, carcasses, etc, and remember the most important thing: you can make a small batch. Stock making need not be a big production unless you are making real veal stock

[RobertCollins]

Actually, I simply make my own stock. For chicken, 10# of backs and I hope, a few necks, water to cover . Bring to a boil, pour off the water , wash the chicken parts[ rince with hot water] , simmer at 190 degrees for about 3-4 hours, then add couple chooped carrots, couple leeks including green parts, a stick or two of celery-- I don't, caUSE i THINK CELERY IS TOO BITTER, maybe you might want to add some Parsely, I don't 'cause I want a clean white stock. Cook at 190 degrees for another hour . Cool { Ice in a cooler around the pan} put it in the reefer, package.

That is simple, now I come to my conundrum.

I have been packiging in Deli containerins like used to sell you a salad or portion of beans. I got on a mission and found these things aren't BPA Free.

Ideas please.

Sorry, I can see spelling errors but I can't figure out how to use this sites stuff to solve my lack of knowledge.

How do I now package this stock? I have 15 qt waiting.

[btbyrd]

I make most of my stock from scratch, saving whatever bones I generate in the freezer until I reach critical mass for pressure cooking. I try to make big enough batches that I can freeze copious amounts of leftovers. I also do this for more involved stocks... I've got a couple quarts of the Momofuku ramen broth in my freezer right now. But when I can't make something from scratch (or it's too much hassle to thaw something) I use the More than Gourmet stocks/demis which taste very good for most applications -- far better than store bought stocks. A 16oz tub can seem expensive, but they last forever (about 6 months) in the fridge and they take up much less space than boxes or cans of broth from the megamart. Did I mention that they taste better?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Actually, I simply make my own stock. For chicken, 10# of backs and I hope, a few necks, water to cover . Bring to a boil, pour off the water , wash the chicken parts[ rince with hot water] , simmer at 190 degrees for about 3-4 hours, then add couple chooped carrots, couple leeks including green parts, a stick or two of celery-- I don't, caUSE i THINK CELERY IS TOO BITTER, maybe you might want to add some Parsely, I don't 'cause I want a clean white stock. Cook at 190 degrees for another hour . Cool { Ice in a cooler around the pan} put it in the reefer, package.

That is simple, now I come to my conundrum.

I have been packiging in Deli containerins like used to sell you a salad or portion of beans. I got on a mission and found these things aren't BPA Free.

Ideas please.

Sorry, I can see spelling errors but I can't figure out how to use this sites stuff to solve my lack of knowledge.

How do I now package this stock? I have 15 qt waiting.

Use BPA free canning jars and lids.

[Lisa Shock]

Agreed, you can freeze in canning jars in addition to traditional canning and vacuum sealing.

[Robenco15]

I always save chicken bones over time and then make stock from that using TK's recipe.

But as that wasn't the question asked and I'm sure Shel_B knows the virtues of homemade stock versus canned stock, but is aware of the convenience of using canned stock when needed, I'd say -

The More than Gourmet is fantastic stuff. Someone posted a link to buying the roasted stock in reduced form (add 20 parts of water or something like that), and I'm sure that is fantastic. I haven't had experience with that exact stock, but I buy the "liquid" form of chicken stock and beef stock they sell and it is great. I can always find that at Whole Foods and I think Fresh Market.

http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Gourmet-Culinary-32-Ounce/dp/B001PNXO5Y/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1391088020&sr=8-4&keywords=more+than+gourmet+chicken+stock

http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Gourmet-Culinary-32-Ounce/dp/B001PNXO3G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1391088031&sr=8-3&keywords=more+than+gourmet+beef+stock

I also recently purchased this veal stock (add water) and made a red wine sauce for a steak and it was amazing - http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Gourmet-1-5-Ounce-Packages/dp/B001EO619A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1391088121&sr=8-2&keywords=more+than+gourmet+veal+stock

I can't get veal bones so that is the best I can do.

I don't have an oven so I can't make my own beef stock. I used the More than Gourmet beef stock in beef bourguignon and it was great.

I highly recommend More Than Gourmet and I learned of the brand from James Peterson's high recommendation.

Quick thing about using water - depending the situation, definitely fantastic. Made French Onion Soup with it (Ruhlman's recipe) and it worked perfectly.

Edited January 30, 2014 by Robenco15 (log)

[Shel_B]

Quick thing about using water - depending the situation, definitely fantastic. Made French Onion Soup with it (Ruhlman's recipe) and it worked perfectly.

Is that the Bouchon-style onion soup? If so, it's quite good. The trick, as far as I'm concerned, is to really caramelize the onions until they are dark brown and soft. Too many "caramelized" onions are little more than fried.

[Robenco15]

It's from ruhlman's 20 but I basically do the 5 hour carmelization Tk calls for and substitute water for the stock. Sherry, red wine, red wine vinegar. Good stuff.

[IrishJersey]

I've been making different meals out of whole chicken lately, as they're so cheap in my grocery store right now. I'm struggling with my attempts to make quality homemade stock out of leftover bones. 

 

So, my question is this: what is the best and tried method to make a simple satisfying solid homemade stock? I do have a pressure cooker by way of a instantpot. 

 

advice and tips will be greatly appreciated here!! 

[Shelby]

I like to use the bones and trimmings of a chicken I've roasted.  I start with those, fill up the pot with cold water and add celery, onion and carrot ( I save the ends when I'm cooking with these and throw them in the freezer ).   Throw in some salt and pepper.  Maybe some lemon pepper--gives it some "brightness" and I let it gently simmer for hours.  Not fancy, but it's how I do it

[btbyrd]

Wings are one of the best parts of the chicken for making stock as they have a good ratio of meat to bone and connective tissue. It's hard to make a really flavorful stock from bones alone, so adding wings helps punch up flavor (and the gelatin level). I don't know about you fine folks, but when I roast a chicken the wings seldom end up being eaten. I like to take the wings off before hand and save them up. I also like to keep a bunch of chicken feet in my freezer for stock making. These are really cheap at the farmer's market and can be used to enrich the body of pretty much any stock you're making.

Break down the caracass/bones into chunks to maximize surface area and then roast them in the oven at 425 until they're golden brown. Transfer them to a pressure cooker with some onion and garlic, and then cover with just enough water to cover the top of the bones. You can also add browned carrot, celery, or mushrooms depending on how much of that sort of flavor you like in your stock. Cook at full pressure for 1.5 to 2 hours.

Edited November 16, 2014 by btbyrd (log)

[paulraphael]

Thighs often cost less per pound than wings and have much more meat on them. Great flavor. They're my favorite supplement to bones. If you want even more gelatin you can add some feet ... tons of gelatin and cheap.

[jayt90]

I don't put muscles or flesh into my stocks.  Too costly. But chicken backs, necks, wing tips, and skin have lots of flavor and gel.

 

Asian stores often have $1 bags of fresh chicken backs, and I have had good results with them.  

I don't bother with vegetables any longer, as I like the pure chicken flavor.  Sometimes I make a pure vegetable stock in the PC, (just .5 hour is enough.) Then I have the option of blending vegetable stock and chicken stock. 

 

I really pack the chicken parts into the PC, and add just barely enough water, some bay leaves, and 125 ml vinegar. That's optional, but supposedly it extracts calcium from the bones.  One hour is enough time in the PC, with a slow release.

[Shel_B]

http://www.sfgate.com/food/article/STOCK-TIPS-3237449.php

[Katie Meadow]

Since the reason for making stock lies in what's left over or what can be bought for cheap there must be many ways to make a good one. I like stock made from roasted carcass, but I rarely roast whole chickens, so I usually make chicken stock with raw parts. When I have nothing on hand, I buy two lbs backs, 1 lb wings and 1 lb feet. Often, if I am planning to make some variation of soup with chicken meat, I will buy one breast and/or a leg-thigh combo. I put everything in to start with, then take out the breast after half an hour and the dark meat out after 45 minutes. When cool enough, I strip off the meat and set it aside, then throw the bones and skin back in the pot to continue simmering. I do cook an onion stuck with cloves, a carrot and some celery tops along with the parts.

I've never understood how you can cook chicken long enough to make stock--like two or three hours--and still want to eat any of that chicken meat; it seems flavorless and worn out. So with fresh raw pieces like breasts or thighs, rescuing the meat before it overcooks seems like the best solution.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Since the reason for making stock lies in what's left over...

 

I'm not sure I agree with this.