Master Chicken Stock
Submitted by bunnyshah
Master chicken stock simmered low for hours with a whole fowl, leeks, carrots and a classic bouquet of herbs. Skim it well, strain it clear, then chill and lift off the fat for a clean, golden base for any soup or sauce.
YIELD
12 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
4 hrsREADY
4 hrsEvery good kitchen runs on stock, and this is the master recipe to keep in your back pocket. It’s a proper, old-school chicken stock: a whole fowl plus the neck and giblets, simmered slowly with leeks, carrots, celery and a fragrant tangle of parsley, thyme, garlic and bay.
The secret to a clear, clean-tasting stock is in the details. You start the bird in cold water and bring it up slowly, skimming off the gray froth as it rises. That froth is exactly what clouds and muddies a stock if you let it boil back in.
There’s a clever two-stage move built in. After two hours you pull the fowl, strip the meat to use elsewhere, then chop the carcass and bones and return them for two more hours. All that extra collagen from the bones is what gives the finished stock its body and silky mouthfeel.
Strain, chill, and lift off the solid fat cap, and you’ve got a golden base for soups, risottos and sauces. It freezes beautifully too.
Chef Tips
- Keep it at a bare simmer, never a rolling boil. Hard boiling churns the fat back in and turns the stock cloudy and greasy.
- Skim patiently, especially in the first half hour. The froth you remove is the difference between murky and crystal clear.
- Chill it fully, then scrape off the fat that solidifies on top for a leaner, cleaner result.
Variations
- Roast the bones and vegetables first for a darker, deeper brown stock.
- Add mushroom stems, a Parmesan rind, or a splash of white wine for extra savory depth.
- Skip the salt entirely if you plan to reduce the stock later for sauces.
Ingredients
Directions
In a kettle combine the fowl, the neck and the giblets, and 12 cups cold water, bring the water to a boil, and skim the froth.
Add ½ cup cold water, bring the stock to s simmer, and skim any froth.
Add the onion, the leeks, the carrots, the celer, the salt, and the parsley, thyme, garlic clove, and bay leaf and simmer the stock, skimming the froth for 2 hours.
Remove the fowl from the kettle, remove the meat and skin from the carcass, and reserve the meat for another use.
Chop the carcass, return it and the skin to the kettle, and simmer stock, adding boiling water if necessary to keep ingredients barely covered, for 2 more hours.
Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing hard on the solids, and let it cool.
Chill the stock and remove the fat. The stock may be frozen.
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