Homemade Stock Recipes

Steps:

• Chop scrubbed vegetables into 1-inch chunks. Remember, the greater the surface area, the more quickly vegetables will yield their flavor.
• Heat oil in a soup pot. Add onion, celery, carrots, scallions, garlic, parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. Cook over high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add salt and water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Strain. Discard vegetables.
• Other ingredients to consider: mushrooms, eggplant, asparagus (butt ends), corn cobs, fennel (stalks and trimmings), bell peppers, pea pods, chard (stems and leaves), celery root parings, marjoram (stems and leaves), basil, potato parings . . . Get the idea?

Steps:

• Place chicken, vegetables, and herbs and spices in 12-quart stockpot. Set opened steamer basket directly on ingredients in pot and pour over water. Cook on high heat until you begin to see bubbles break through the surface of the liquid. Turn heat down to medium low so that stock maintains low, gentle simmer. Skim the scum from the stock with a spoon or fine mesh strainer every 10 to 15 minutes for the first hour of cooking and twice each hour for the next 2 hours. 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. Cool immediately in large cooler of ice or a sink full of ice water to below 40 degrees. Place in refrigerator overnight. Remove solidified fat from surface of liquid and store in container with lid in refrigerator for 2 to 3 days or in freezer for up to 3 months. Prior to use, bring to boil for 2 minutes. Use as a base for soups and sauces.

Steps:

• In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium heat. Brown chicken on both sides in batches. Remove from pot. Add carrots and onion to same pot; cook and stir until onion is tender, 3-4 minutes., Return chicken to pot. Add remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until chicken juices run clear, 30 minutes. Skim off foam. Remove chicken from pot; let stand until cool enough to handle. Remove chicken from bones (save meat for another use); return bones and skin to pot., Slowly return stock to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 3-4 hours longer. Strain stock through a cheesecloth-lined colander; discard vegetables, bones, skin and spices. If using immediately, skim fat. Or cool the stock, then refrigerate it 8 hours or overnight; remove fat from surface before using. (Stock may be refrigerated up to 3 days or frozen 4-6 months.)

Steps:

• Place all ingredients in a stockpot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 1-1/2 hours., Discard turkey carcass. Cool broth 1 hour. Strain through a cheesecloth-lined colander; discard vegetables and herbs. If using immediately, skim fat from broth; or refrigerate 8 hours or overnight, then remove fat from surface. Broth can be frozen up to 2-3 months.

Steps:

• Save a gallon freezer bag in your freezer.
• Wash all stock ingredients well before peeling.
• As you use your vegetables, chicken, or beef, save the peels, ends, leaves, skins, wing tips etc and place them in separate bags in your freezer. Keep a vegetable bag, a chicken bag and a beef bag. Your vegetable bag will fill the fastest and beef the slowest.
• Once you have a full bag of mixed vegetables, place them all in a large stockpot or a crock pot.
• Pour the water over your ingredients and add the bay leaf, peppercorns and any other herb or spice that you desire.
• If you don't have much garlic or parsley in your freezer bag, then add more if desired. If you have too much, it is not necessary to use it all. Just use what you desire for the flavor you wish to achieve.
• If making meat stock, add meat pieces and bones to the vegetables.
• If using a stockpot, bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours until vegetables are very soft.
• If using a crock pot, cover and cook on low overnight or for 6 to 8 hours.
• Strain stock through a colander to remove vegetables and herbs.
• Strain stock again through doubled layers of cheesecloth to remove all other small particles if desired.
• Stock can be reduced even further if desired or place in quart freezer bags, date and note the contents.
• Stock can be kept up to 6 months in your freezer.
• For Vegetarian and Vegan omit the beef and chicken.

Steps:

• Place the chickens, onions, carrots, celery, parsnips, parsley, thyme, dill, garlic, and seasonings in a 16 to 20-quart stockpot. Add 7 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, for 4 hours. Strain the entire contents of the pot through a colander and discard the solids. Chill the stock overnight. The next day, remove the surface fat. Use immediately or pack in containers and freeze for up to 3 months.