Simple Homemade Chicken Stock | Alexandra's Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

What are the do's and don'ts of chicken stock? ›

The most important thing to do, especially when making a dark meat stock, is to fully roast the bones and meat scraps. If you don't, the stock will be colored a wimpy grey instead of a beautiful brown. The same goes for chicken parts: Roast them to a golden brown.

Like homemade Vegetable Broth, making homemade chicken stock is an easy way to save money, use up what you have on hand and create something healthy and delicious while you're at it. Use it in soups like Pastina, Avgolemono, White Bean and Kale Soup, Ratatouille, Chicken Gnocchi Soup, or Italian Wedding Soup.

Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, occasionally skimming the surface to remove foam, scum and fat, until the stock has reduced by about one third, about 3 hours. If the veggies or bones come above the water at any point, add more water to the pot.

Stock is generally made from bones, and broth is generally made from flesh. In both cases, they are often supported with aromatic vegetables, but in the case of stock, left unseasoned for maximum flexibility in recipes, whereas broth will usually contain at least salt and pepper.

Beet roots and onion skins should also be avoided, unless you don't mind your stock turning red or brown. Spoiled vegetables: Although stock is a great way to use veggies that are wilted or slightly past their prime, be sure not to use produce that is rotten or moldy.

Just as when you're making stock for soups or stews, boiling will cause soluble proteins and rendered fat to emulsify into the cooking liquid. By simmering, you avoid emulsifying the fat and thus keep the stock clearer, and we found that the scum created simply settled to the bottom of the pot.

And the Winner Is..

Stock! Whether homemade or store-bought it has more protein and usually less sodium per serving as compared to broth. Plus, the flavor is just better which means you'll start with something tastier and will hopefully use less salt to taste at the end.

Information. Chicken broth can be refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen (for best quality) for 2-3 months.

Cook it too long, though, and you get into a case of seriously diminishing returns. Throughout my testing, I tasted my stocks as they cooked, and I generally found about one and a half hours to be a reasonable endpoint—plenty of time for a flavorful, rich broth, but not so long that it's a major commitment to make it.

A TikToker shared her hack for making delicious mashed potatoes: boiling them in chicken stock. I tried it out and made two batches: one from potatoes boiled in stock and one in water. The stock-boiled potatoes were much more flavorful and slightly creamier.

Is 3 hours long enough for chicken stock? ›

Let simmer uncovered at a low simmer for 4 to 6 hours. Check every hour or so to be sure there is still enough water in the pot. if the water is evaporating too quickly, lower the heat, or add a bit more water.

Add hot water as needed to keep bones and vegetables submerged. Simmer uncovered for 6 to 8 hours. Strain stock through a fine mesh strainer into another large stockpot or heatproof container discarding the solids.

(It helps draw out nutrients and minerals from the bones into the stock.) Simmer the stock for 6 to 8 hours, covered, keeping an eye on it to make sure it stays at a simmer. Strain the stock through a fine-meshed sieve. Let cool.

Stock is made with bones and is used as a base for soups, sauces, and stews. Bouillon is a concentrated liquid that is used as a base for soups, sauces, and stews, and fond is the flavorful browned bits left behind in a pan after sautéing or roasting and is often used as a base for soups, sauces, and stews.

Don't add too much water as it will only dilute the flavor. Simmer gently and skim to remove impurities that rise to the surface. For a clear stock, never let it boil and never stir it. Avoid adding salt if reducing the stock later.

Onion skins add a deeper flavor, but yellow or red skins can change the color of a light colored stock dramatically. The bones of very oily fish (mackerel, salmon, and trout for example) are usually avoided because they can make a stock too strong in specific flavors to work in any other dish.

Chicken broth can be refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen (for best quality) for 2-3 months.

Add more cold water as evaporation occurs and as bones and vegetables are exposed. Cold water prevents impurities that have risen to the top of the stock from melting and redispersing back into the stock. 2. Simmer, Never Boil: Keep your stock at a simmer with gentle bubbles just breaking at its surface.