| Home Chicken Stock
I have pondered for some time over the utility of posting a chicken
stock recipe.
On the negative side:
· I never made the stuff until I went
to school
· Swenson’s canned chicken broth is
cheap and well rated
· It takes 2+ hours to prepare and
cook, and its hot, heavy and messy
· It needs containers and space to
fridge and/or freeze
· It's always frozen when I need it
thawed
On the ‘do it anyhow’ side:
· It's noticeably better than the canned
stuff, especially in soups and reductions
· I'm never without it now (nor without
Swenson’s either, to be honest)
· Canned broths are heavily salted
and even more so when reduced
· Bouillon cubes are an abomination
· I have the pots, strainers, containers,
space and time
· I like chicken salad now and then
You will need a large stockpot, about 8 quarts, to cook the stock.
Most stockpots are aluminum or stainless steel. Go cheap here, if
buying. You will need another pot to strain the stock into. It can
be a little smaller. Your Dutch oven, turkey roaster or even a sturdy plastic
container will do for this purpose. Use a colander (not shown) to
first-strain the stock from one pot to the other. Then, for the final
straining, use a large fine-mesh strainer such as a China cap (far right),
or a chinois (large second from right) or your trusty colander lined
with cheesecloth. Finally, you will need some quart containers for
the finished stock. Plastic take-out containers with tight lids are
fine.
In restaurants that make stock, “chicken parts for stock” are
collected from other dishes in preparation and/or bought from a vendor;
the veggies are saved scrapes and old produce from the walk-in—all of which
is thrown out after the stock is made. I've heard stories of chefs
so cheap that they recycle stock meat and veggies for staff meals, but
I doubt them. At home, look for a bargain price, but nice fresh whole
chicken to make the stock. Then, after it is finished, the large
pieces of chicken can be saved and used for chicken salad.
Thus forewarned, if you are still undeterred, here's how:
HOME CHICKEN STOCK
Yield: about 4½ quarts
See Abbreviations, if needed
· 1
large chicken, cut up and skinned
· 3
large onions, halved, peeled and roughly sliced
· ¾ bunch
celery, roughly sliced
· 2
medium carrots, peeling optional, ¾ –inch slices
· 3
garlic cloves, cracked and peeled
·
BG (pepper corns, parsley stems, thyme and bay leaves, loose)
·
NO SALT
· 6 qts
water
1. Cut the chicken in half and separate the legs, thighs and wing
joints. Discard the
liver and heart
2. Remove the skin from the legs, thighs, neck and breast halves
3. Place the chicken parts into the stockpot, add the cut-up
veggies, garlic and the BG
4. Fill the pot with water, about 6 quarts (rule: about 1½
quarts of water/lb.of chicken)
5. BTB covered, to save energy (20% faster, according to McGee)
6. Immediately reduce heat to simmer, skim off foam
7. Simmer uncovered for two hours, skimming as necessary
8. Place a colander, without cheesecloth, on top of the second
pot and carefully drain the
hot stockpot
· Set the chicken parts
and veggies aside in a third container
· Cool and wipe the stockpot
clean and place the colander and cheesecloth or the
fine mesh strainer on top
of it. Pour back the chicken stock to strain it a second time
· Immediately ladle the
finished stock into plastic containers and immediately
place them in the freezer
to cool.
9. Separate the chicken meat from the bones and cooked veggies.
Place the meat in
suitable containers and immediately cool in the
fridge or freezer. Use later for
chicken salad.
Note: When using homemade stock, always BTB separately or in
the process of making whatever you are making.
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