Basic chicken or turkey stock
Making stock from the leftover bones from a roast means you always have a good base for soups, risottos and gravies. It really helps us get the most from a meat joint and is a great alternative to stock cubes and powders or the fresh stocks you find at the supermarket.
Essential ingredient
- Chicken or turkey carcass
Optional ingredients
- 1 onion, cut into 4 (including skin)
- A couple of carrots (skin scrubbed)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 celery stick, chopped n half
- 1 teaspoon of black peppercorns
- Few sprigs of thyme
- Parsley and a small bay leaf
Method
- Put the carcass into a large saucepan and cover with water. If you’re adding vegetables, you can include some onion (cut into 4 – including skin), chopped carrots, garlic clove or celery. You could also sprinkle in black peppercorns, thyme, parsley and bay leaf.
- Bring up to the boil and remove any froth from the surface with a large spoon. Turn down the heat and simmer for 1½ – 2 hours.
- Cool a little, strain and leave to cool. The vegetables can be kept to use in a soup. The fat can be removed from the surface by drawing absorbent kitchen paper over it.
Tips
- You can freeze your stock in batches and defrost when you need it.
- Even if you don’t have time to make stock, you can freeze the bones from the roast bird and make the stock when you have more time.
- As an alternative to using whole vegetables, you can freeze vegetable ends, stalks, peelings or scraps and add them to your stock when you need them.
Recipe from Love Food Hate Waste.