Three homemade stocks to stock up on this fall
It’s that time of year: Days are visibly shorter, nights longer. A morning and evening chill have replaced summer’s heat, such as it was. We still have plenty of summer’s harvest, but for how long?
For me and many other passionate home cooks, that means it’s time to make a fresh batch of stock. I used the last of mine a couple of weeks ago in a garden minestrone, and now I must replenish my supply.
Making stocks at home is easy and requires little hands-on time. Most of the time involved is simply in the simmering, which requires almost no attention.
You can, of course, shorten the required time by using an Instant Pot or a stovetop pressure cooker, and you can make stocks overnight in a Crock-Pot or similar slow cooker. Follow the instructions that come with whatever appliance you prefer. Today’s column is all about preparing stocks on the stove.
My methods have evolved over the years. I did not start out adding vinegar, but I add it now as it helps leach calcium and other minerals from the bones in the stock. In the quantities I make, there is no residual taste.
Once you have made and cooled the stock, you can pack it in 1-cup or 2-cup amounts, in freezer bags or other containers. A cup of stock is ideal for many sauces, and 2 cups are enough to make risotto, as you’ll combine the stock with water. Many soups need 4 to 6 cups, and if you make a lot of such soups, you may want to package larger amounts.
Stock, often called bone broth these days, is readily available in supermarkets but honestly, there is no better gift to soups, sauces, braises and risottos than homemade stock. It’s more economical, too, especially if you watch for sales.
Vegetable stock adds flavor to a range of dishes, but it doesn’t contribute to the texture or structure of a dish like meat-based stocks do because it has no collagen or gelatin. But vegetarians and vegans always should have a flavorful vegetable stock handy for making soups, sauces, stews and risottos.
Rich Vegetable Stock
Makes about 8 cups
3 large yellow onions, unpeeled and quartered
1 head celery, inner leaves and ribs only, in chunks
3 tomatoes, cored and halved
2 heads garlic, halved
1 bunch (about 1 pound) Swiss chard, in chunks
3 large leeks, split and cleaned
3 carrots, in chunks
3 zucchini, in chunks
8 ounces mushroom trimmings (stems, peels) or whole crimini mushrooms
1 bunch (about 16 sprigs) Italian parsley
3 sprigs thyme
3 sprigs oregano
Kosher salt
½ cup olive oil
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Put the vegetables and herbs in a large roasting pan and sprinkle lightly with salt. Drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables, set in the oven and roast for 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven and tip everything, pan juices and all, into a large saucepan or stock pot. Add enough water to cover, bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat and simmer very gently for 1 ½ hours, adding water as needed to keep the vegetables just covered.
Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Strain, discard the vegetables, clean the pot and return the stock to it.
Set over medium heat and simmer until reduced by about a third.
Remove from the heat, cool completely, refrigerate and use within 4 to 5 days. The stock can be frozen for up to 6 months.
Chicken stock is the best all-purpose stock for home cooks, because it is so versatile and because the ingredients are readily at hand. The specific parts of a chicken used for stock are less important than the chicken itself, which should be pastured and, if possible, organic. Rocky, Rosie and Mary’s are all good options, as are the chickens of our small local producers. Older chickens, sometimes known as stewing hens, make some of the best stock. If you buy eggs directly from a farm, you might ask if they ever have stewing hens available; some do.
Chicken Stock
Makes about 8 to 12 cups
5 pounds chicken parts (backs, necks, feet, meaty carcasses, wings)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 yellow onion, in chunks
Several garlic cloves, lightly crushed
1 celery rib, in chunks
1 carrot, in chunks
1 tomato, cored and cut into chunks
Kosher salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 bay leaves
3 or 4 ⅛-inch thick slices of fresh ginger
3 Italian parsley sprigs
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Put the chicken in a large stockpot, add the vinegar and water to cover the chicken by 3 inches and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer gently; use a wide, shallow spoon to skim off any foam that forms.
Meanwhile, put the vegetables in a roasting pan, season with salt, drizzle with the olive oil and toss gently. Set on the middle rack of the oven and roast for 45 minutes.
Tip the roasted vegetables and all pan juices into the stockpot and continue to simmer gently, partially covered, for 3 hours, until the chicken bones fall apart when pressed with a wooden spoon. Add water as needed to keep everything covered.
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