Monday, September 26, 2011

Use that chicken carcass to make stock.

A roasted chicken is beautiful and delicious. It's also especially frugal if you're not feeding a family. I usually get 4 or 5 meals out of one. But you can stretch it even further by making stock. It's also super easy. If you can boil water, literally, you can make stock. I cleaned most of the meat from the chicken I just roasted and put it back in the dutch oven. I didn't wash out the pot because of all the good browned bits on the bottom. Those make for great stock. Fill the pot with water until it just barely covers the chicken. Then let it simmer. Easy, right?



After I took that picture I decided the lemon rind may make the broth bitter. I took it out and squeezed the soft, cooked pulp into the broth but threw the rind away. When I make stock I let it simmer until it has a good color and full flavor, usually a couple hours. Once you're happy with it, take your pot of the heat and let it cool. Remove the bones and strain out the solids. I use a regular old colander. When it fully cools the fat will rise to the top. I usually put mine in the fridge so the fat solidifies, but I know not everyone does. Either way, use a slotted spoon to remove the fat from the top of the broth and you're good to go. You can make a multitude of things with it and it freezes very well. It also tastes WAY better and is healthier than store brands.
p.s. Can we talk about the color of that stock? Gorgeous!!

2 comments:

  1. We love to use our stock for rice.
    So delicious and good for you.
    Unless you are a vegetarian that is.
    But I know you, LuLu, are not.

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  2. your whole blog makes me mad you don't invite me over for dinner more often.

    (also, that last picture is a little gross).

    ReplyDelete