Homemade Chicken Stock
KCaulder@CalhounTimes.com
Homemade chicken stock is one of those recipes that every home cook should have in their repertoire. A good homemade stock enhances everything cooked with it and takes your soup and stew game to the next level. Easy to make and full of nutrients, my Granny’s recipe is so flavorful that you’ll wonder why you haven’t been making it all along.
These days, people make stocks in slow cookers and Instant Pots but when I was a kid this chicken stock would simmer all day long in a giant stock pot on the stove, and I still think that’s the best way to go about making it. Cooking it in a stock pot allows you to add in all the fragrant vegetables and herbs that take this stock from standard to delicious. If you opt for the Instant Pot, you’ll want to leave those out.
To get started, you’ll need to select your chicken. I prefer using a four to five pound whole chicken to make my stock because I can use the meat in different recipes throughout the rest of the week once it has been cooked. If you’re trying to avoid visits to the grocery store and have another type of bone-in, skin-on chicken in your kitchen, that will work too. Use four to five pounds of whatever meat you have on hand or leftovers from a whole rotisserie chicken in place of the whole bird.
Once you’ve chosen your meat, it’s pretty simple. Gather your herbs and vegetables — personally, I like to use carrots, onion (include their skins — they’ll give your broth a beautiful color and are strained out later), celery garlic and thyme — and dunk them in a deep stock pot with the chicken. Then cover the chicken with fresh, cold water. Make sure to use enough to submerge the entire chicken. Cook over medium-high heat for several hours. And, that’s it. It’s that simple. Once the stock has been cooked, I store it in quart jars in the refrigerator for use in recipes during the week. It can also be stored in freezer-safe containers in the freezer for long term storage, up to a year.