Chicken Stock

There is nothing better than homemade stock. There is no measuring in this recipe, and because of that it never turns out the same-and that is okay. A few months ago, for some reason, I had an over abundance of celery scraps. I threw them all in the pot and was worried it would overwhelm the stock but what transpired was one of the best batches I ever made. Don’t be afraid to throw any vegetable you can imagine into this concoction. The results will be amazing.

I keep a bag inside my freezer and throw chicken bones and vegetable scraps into it for a few weeks (rotisserie chicken scraps work well). Then on a cloudy or rainy day, I throw it all in a pot, cover with water and let it simmer all day. Bonus: It makes the house smell wonderful. Strain out the solids and toss and fill containers with the wonderful liquid gold. You can freeze or pressure can.

These days, I find myself pressure canning due to limited freezer space and also because it’s more convenient- no thaw time. Because I’m pressure canning, I now opt to simmer the broth in a large turkey roaster and I cook for 24-36 hours so the bones can release more nutrients into the broth, hence bone broth. I can get 17 quarts of chicken bone broth out of 1 batch in my turkey roaster.

I love a broth heavy on celery and thyme. I also squeeze a fresh lemon or two into each batch. It just brightens it up.

Chicken Stock

Ingredients

chicken (carcass/bones/scraps)
onion (onion peels)
celery (end pieces and leaves)
carrots (peels)
garlic (peels)
tomatoes (end pieces)
thyme (fresh or dried)
lemon
black peppercorns
salt

Directions

Toss all the ingredients into a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer for several hours. Strain.

For bone broth, simmer for 24-36 hours, adding water as needed. Strain.

Make this recipe your own. Use any vegetables you like, add different spices, turn up the heat with different peppers.

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