Gelatinous Meat Stock -- Is this normal?

[Dave the Cook]

Marlene's right. Nice job, KensethFan!

But . . . your chicken stock should be turning out the same way. Maybe we can help you improve it?

[doctortim]

As everyone else said, it's a good sign! As for why your chicken stock isn't turning out that way, perhaps it's too diluted? Even the most gelatinous stock won't set if there's too much water.

[scubadoo97]

Echo the fact that you did good. It's a beautiful thing. Funny, my wife and kids looks at the gelatinous results and makes a face and say yuck. Ignorance is not bliss.

[Pielle]

As everyone else said, it's a good sign! As for why your chicken stock isn't turning out that way, perhaps it's too diluted? Even the most gelatinous stock won't set if there's too much water.

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In some books they recomend doing chicken stock only with back bones, which are often readily availabe in 10 kg boxes directly from the processing plant. When I make stock with back bones, even if I use A LOT, I dont get a gelatinious stock as the gelatin is concentrated in cartilage from leg bones, and also from the skin (I think). I get a gelatinious stock when I make stock from whole chickens.

[Busboy]

As everyone else said, it's a good sign! As for why your chicken stock isn't turning out that way, perhaps it's too diluted? Even the most gelatinous stock won't set if there's too much water.

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In some books they recomend doing chicken stock only with back bones, which are often readily availabe in 10 kg boxes directly from the processing plant. When I make stock with back bones, even if I use A LOT, I dont get a gelatinious stock as the gelatin is concentrated in cartilage from leg bones, and also from the skin (I think). I get a gelatinious stock when I make stock from whole chickens.

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If you're looking for a more gelatenous chicken stock, see if you can find some chicken feet at the grocery store (try Latin or Asian markets). Similarly you can add pork feet to a beef stock to get the same effect.

[ruthcooks]

How far we have come from Jellied Chicken and Calves' Foot Jelly.

Back when, pre 1950s, ladies--or their cooks--packed cooked chicken pieces in a loaf pan and added strong gelatinous stock to the top. Chilled, this was cut in slices and served at luncheons. The beef version, made with calves' feet, contained no meat. The jelled stock was considered a fit food for invalids.

Chicken Jello, anyone?

[FoodMan]

yes, you did very good and a jelled stock is a beautiful (and delicious) thing. BTW, I've found that to make the best chicken stock thta jells nicely and has amazing flavor, I need to use.....turkey necks and wings. Seriously, since making an awsome stock with leftover turkey carcass from T-giving dinner, I never went back to chicken.

[KensethFan]

Thanks everyone!!! I really appreciate you help. I was kinda worried. Glad to hear I made good stock. But now I'm a bit concerned about why my chicken stock is not gelatinous.

When I make chicken stock, I usually buy a few chickens (fryer) and chop them up. I only use the backs and wings for the stock. I cover the backs and wings with water such that it is about 2 inches above the backs and wings. I let the stock simmer and skim it for about two hours. Then I add the mirepoix and the bouquet garni and let it simmer for another hour. I cool it and strain it through a chinois. Then I refrigerate it and skim the grease off the top the next morning.

I have read the tips on making the chicken stock more gelatinous and appreciate them all. Any more ideas would be welcome.

[menon1971]

As everyone else said, it's a good sign! As for why your chicken stock isn't turning out that way, perhaps it's too diluted? Even the most gelatinous stock won't set if there's too much water.

←

In some books they recomend doing chicken stock only with back bones, which are often readily availabe in 10 kg boxes directly from the processing plant. When I make stock with back bones, even if I use A LOT, I dont get a gelatinious stock as the gelatin is concentrated in cartilage from leg bones, and also from the skin (I think). I get a gelatinious stock when I make stock from whole chickens.

←

If you're looking for a more gelatenous chicken stock, see if you can find some chicken feet at the grocery store (try Latin or Asian markets). Similarly you can add pork feet to a beef stock to get the same effect.

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Chicken feet rock for stock. Jamaicans also make a righteous soup out of them.

[WHT]

Thanks everyone!!!  I really appreciate you help.  I was kinda worried.  Glad to hear I made good stock.  But now I'm a bit concerned about why my chicken stock is not gelatinous.

When I make chicken stock, I usually buy a few chickens (fryer) and chop them up.  I only use the backs and wings for the stock.  I cover the backs and wings with water such that it is about 2 inches above the backs and wings.  I let the stock simmer and skim it for about two hours.  Then I add the mirepoix and the bouquet garni and let it simmer for another hour.  I cool it and strain it through a chinois.  Then I refrigerate it and skim the grease off the top the next morning.

I have read the tips on making the chicken stock more gelatinous and appreciate them all.  Any more ideas would be welcome.

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Is the chicken raw or cooked when you start? I use leftover roasters for my stock and get good results.

[KensethFan]

I use raw chicken. Sometimes when making chicken stock, I might throw in a few bones from previously cooked chicken, but mostly I use raw chicken.

[menon1971]

I use raw chicken.  Sometimes when making chicken stock, I might throw in a few bones from previously cooked chicken, but mostly I use raw chicken.

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So you are making a white stock? Are there raw bones involved and if so try roasting the bones at 450F for ten minutes or so, or until nicely browned.

[Dave the Cook]

Though I agree that it will make a better stock, I doubt that roasting has any effect on collagen-gelatin conversion.

[WHT]

I use raw chicken.  Sometimes when making chicken stock, I might throw in a few bones from previously cooked chicken, but mostly I use raw chicken.

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That is why the stock does not gel.

[Dave the Cook]

There are two reasons the stock doesn't gel. The first is because it's not being simmered long enough for full collagen conversion from the particular bones being used -- KensethFan says he simmers about about two hours. Different bones will render differently, but certainly, four hours would be better, and eight probably wouldn't be too long. The signal that you've got complete conversion is when you can break the bones with a pair of tongs. Bones contain collagen, too; when it's gone, the bones lose their resiliency, and that's as far as you should go.

The second reason is the ratio of bones and meat to water. If there's too much water, you won't get gel. Two pounds of meaty bones, simmered sufficiently, will yield about one quart of good stock. I weigh my bones, jot a note, then make the stock. After straining and defatting, I measure. If I've got more than the target volume (I almost always do, because there's no reason not to be generous with water while simmering), I reduce. Upon chilling, gel occurs, without fail -- the degree varies according to the parts used. (I use half wings and half legs -- purchased on sale and frozen -- plus whatever backs and such I accumulate between sesions.)

[Pam R]

I get good gel from raw chicken. As Dave says, simmer it longer and it should gel up some more.

Wings, necks and backs are my choice for chicken stock.

[fiftydollars]

You can also try reducing the stock.

I often re-use the bones after making demi-glace or veal stock and the resulting 20 qts of watery stock reduce down to about 1 cup of super concentrated veal goodness that is hard as a hockey puck at room temperature.

[Octaveman]

For my monthly chicken stock, I throw in about 4 raw carcases of chicken after taking the breasts/legs/thighs off for cooking during the previous month. Each carcas will have the neck, back, complete wings w/ meat and the breast bone. I just freeze them for later use for my stock and usually combine with a bulk package of thighs I get for $.89/lb. I have NEVER had a problem with loose stock. One time I threw in 2 whole cornish game hens and got good results too. When I'm done after 4-5 hours of simmering the cooled stock is a huge gelatonous blob that is firm that can be cut without any bleeding.

As Dave said, extend the cooking time to at least 4 hours. Pack your stock pot really well. I use a 16qt pot and the ingredients come to within 5 inches from the top to which the water gets to 1 inch from the top. Lots of bones and some meat. Wings, thighs, neck, back and breast bones have been berry berry good to me.

Edited February 15, 2007 by Octaveman (log)

[chromedome]

The generally-accepted ratio for stock making is water at 100%, meat/bones at 50%, and mirepoix at 10%. In other words, if you've got 4kg of chicken to work with, you should use no more than 8L of water.

I find that wings and legs provide lots of gelatin in a stock, but I'm too damned cheap to use the legs. I'll occasionally poach chicken legs or "parts" in the nascent broth, along with the backs/wings/necks/other cheap stuff. I fish them out when they're cooked and use them in other dishes, but in the interim they've enriched the stock. I'll also usually throw the bones back in, after deboning the legs.

I'm spoiled at my current workplace. Y'know how you get a tablespoon or so of pure chicken jelly in the bottom of your roaster? Well, we roast off 600-800kg of chicken some weeks. I get 20L buckets of the stuff to work with. My customers think I'm a soupmaking genius...

[rooftop1000]

My beef stock looks funny...and not ha ha funny

Its light brown like gravy and I am not amused.

I roasted all my bones and veggies for 1.5 hours at 400 degrees and simmered it for 10 hours

it looks yucky

tracey

[menon1971]

My beef stock looks funny...and not ha ha funny

Its light brown like gravy and I am not amused.

I roasted all my bones and veggies for 1.5 hours at 400 degrees and simmered it for 10 hours

it looks yucky

tracey

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I would try a higher heat for the roasting, say 475F, for 20-30 minutes until nicely browned. Also heat is important. The stock should never boil. If the vegetables lose structural integrity or if the remaining meat is "boiled to rags" the stock will be murky. Thorough straining is essential too, before the stock is reduced. I may be called out on this one, but I generally do not simmer for more than 5 hours before straining.

[djyee100]

Once I made a chicken stock only from the tips of chicken wings, that little bony thing that butchers will sometimes trim off. It made a great stock. Usually I stick to chicken backs, leftover chicken bones, and chicken wings. I prefer raw to cooked stock trimmings.

A little meat makes the stock taste sweet and full. If I'm in a good mood, I'll throw in a chicken leg. Also, over the years I've learned to keep the mirepoix amount to a minimum, so that the stock tastes very very chicken-y.

I also keep the water to a minimum (usually enough to cover the bones by an inch or two) so the stock is thick and jelled. Then I freeze it in 2 cup amounts in ziploc bags. The concentrated stock can always be watered down later when I cook with it.

For the past few years I've used Alton Brown's method of cooking stock in the oven. I bring the stock to a simmer on the stovetop, cover it, then stick it in a 275 degree oven for 4-6 hours. If I'm nervous about the stock boiling, I'll put the probe from my digital thermometer into the stock and watch the temperature. It seems the more even heat from the oven (compared to the stovetop) reduces the amount of the protein scum. Since using this method, I barely have to skim off scum--not my favorite task.

Edited February 19, 2007 by djyee100 (log)

[Marlene]

My beef stock looks funny...and not ha ha funny

Its light brown like gravy and I am not amused.

I roasted all my bones and veggies for 1.5 hours at 400 degrees and simmered it for 10 hours

it looks yucky

tracey

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My guess is it's because you roasted the bones first. My roasted beef stock is usually brown in colour. I just took a roasted pork stock off and the same thing. While not as brown as beef, it definately isn't clear. I definately get a different colour depending on whether I'm making a roasted or raw stock. And there's a difference between brown and murky. While roasted stock doesn't seem to need as much skimming as raw, it does need it. If it's murky, how much skimming did you do at the front end? That will affect the murkiness. You get clear stock from using raw bones and meat. I'm betting you it will be lovely.

I would try a higher heat for the roasting, say 475F, for 20-30 minutes until nicely browned. Also heat is important. The stock should never boil. If the vegetables lose structural integrity or if the remaining meat is "boiled to rags" the stock will be murky. Thorough straining is essential too, before the stock is reduced. I may be called out on this one, but I generally do not simmer for more than 5 hours before straining.

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I recently attended some cooking classes as ICE in New York and our instructor gave the following times for making various stocks.

Fish stock - 1 hour

Chicken - 3-4 hours

Vegetable - 3 hours

Beef and Veal - 10-12 hours.

Edited February 20, 2007 by Marlene (log)

[bekkiz]

Ok, here's a question.

I made beef stock w/ oxtails and other meaty bone pieces that I roasted for about 20 minutes at 425. I also roasted th carrots, onions and celery.

I covered the mess with water, and simmered/skimmed for a few hours (maybe 4-5). It reduced significantly, gelled very nicely (maybe even too much) and is a very pretty dark brown color.

However, it doesn't taste like anything. I added a good amount of salt in the cooking process (I kept tasting, and there was just nothing). And now it just taste like enriched, slightly salty, water. Apparently I'm an idiot. Ideas on how to prevent this the next time around? I'm a little desperate.

Edited February 20, 2007 by bekkiz (log)

[Marlene]

Ok, here's a question.

I made beef stock w/ oxtails and other meaty bone pieces that I roasted for about 20 minutes at 425. I also roasted th carrots, onions and celery.

I covered the mess with water, and simmered/skimmed for a few hours (maybe 4-5). It reduced significantly, gelled very nicely (maybe even too much) and is a very pretty dark brown color.

However, it doesn't taste like anything. I added a good amount of salt in the cooking process (I kept tasting, and there was just nothing). And now it just taste like enriched, slightly salty, water. Apparently I'm an idiot. Ideas on how to prevent this the next time around? I'm a little desperate.

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Ok wait. The stock reduced while simmering? Or did you strain, chill and reduce? Did you salt while making the stock or while reducing? If you salt before reducing it will become very very salty. Also, for a beef stock, (see post above) 4-5 hours just isn't long enough to extract all the flavours from the bones etc.

And you're not an idiot. I didn't take up stock making until a couple of years ago. You should review all my clueless questions in the stock Q&A! I'm far from an expert, but I do make stock on a very regular basis these days.

Edited February 20, 2007 by Marlene (log)