Basic Bone Broth and Stock
Bone broth and stocks are a fundamental in the kitchen. They create depth of flavor in the most simplest of dishes and it is always comforting to know you have some hidden in the back of the freezer. The hardest part is remembering to keep your bones, shells and vegetable discards- these are key ingredients to making liquid gold.
Stock vs. Broth
I too had this same question: What is the difference between bone stock and bone broth? They are essentially the same thing, the difference lies in cooking time and using just bones stripped of meat or bones with meat. Any stock or broth is where the collagen seeps out of joints and bones during long- term cooking. A really good stock is defined as BROTH. This can be seen by the thickness of the liquid due to gelatin and a VERY long cooking time (6 - 18 hours). A stock can be formed in as little as 2 hours. Both include healing properties for your hair, skin, nails and promotes a healthy gut.
Making the simplest Stock or Bone Broth
I am a fan of eating delicious food and making it as simple as possible for 5 days of the week. We tend to go all out on the weekends, Jeff loves to test new ideas or recreate old recipes. He is actually looking to write a series for those of you who would like to be a Weekend Warrior at a later date.
For a stock endeavor, I am a mom that has a handful of things to accomplish in a day (as all moms do). So when it comes to making stocks and broths I need it to be quick and painless. This is just a set it and forget it recipe. Late at night, when Jeff and I are sitting on the couch watching a program or chatting, I will get a whiff of warm tasty comfort and remember "the stock"! Oh yeah, we made that and it is going to be sooo good.
Stock is made with what you have on hand. It is not to cause trouble or anguish. The whole point is to celebrate the animal and use it fully. Same ideals can be towards vegetation as well, but we are talking bone stocks and broths right now. To create a vegetable stock and broth you collect vegetables and herbs- a head of garlic or mirepoix (carrots, onions and celery) pieces/discards from past meals. Stems of parsley, mushroom peelings, etc. For bone you may work with chicken, beef or fish bones. The essential ingredient to all stocks and broths is water and you want to cover your stock ingredients with enough, but not too much to where you possibly drown the flavor.
Simple Chicken Bone Broth Recipe
Here is my set it and forget it, very simple chicken bone broth (or stock dependent on time and what is reserved in the fridge)
1 Rotisserie Chicken Carcass
12 cups water
Place chicken carcass in a 6 qt (large crockpot) and 12 cups cold water. Start on high and once the stock begins to simmer, bubbling below a boiling point, then reduce heat to low. I begin this process in the morning usually the day after we finish the rotisserie and by evening it is ready to strain. Make sure to turn off crockpot and cool before refrigerating. You do not want to warm the whole fridge, nor have your stock enter the danger zone. Best practice is to turn the crock pot off and remove insert to a cooling rack/pad 1 hour before bedtime. You can then "strain the stock" by removing the carcass/bones and placing the stock in a bowl to refrigerate. The next day, skim your stock by taking a large spoon and removing fat from the top. Then, store stock in freezer bags or use (we use quart sized freezer bags because they tend to be the perfect amount for meal usage).
Note: You can customize to how long and how many bones/meat to add to your broth. We like our broth to be as colorful and thick as possible for most flavor. Therefore, when we add the carcass sometimes we will add any other random chicken bones lying around the freezer kept to add to a potential stock. Also, any gelatin "tasty bits" at the bottom of a pan/rotisserie container can be thrown in.
Try our Easy Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe with the Simple Broth Recipe below
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