I love making homemade chicken stock. This is a good “lazy afternoon” weekend project, and taking the time to make homemade chicken stock means you care enough to have something rich and flavorful on hand for your favorite dishes. When in a pinch, if I don’t have any, I do use store bought.
I’ve tried so many recipes over the years and what I learned is this is something that doesn’t need to be exact. I do have a few things that I do to make a really good stock. And, its so good, I even drink it!
First, I roast the chicken bones along with some vegetables and use the fond (the good brown stuff on the baking sheet).
To get the fond off the sheet pan, I add a little water and loosen with a spatula.
I don’t add salt as I will add it when I am using it in a recipe.
Once cooled and strained, I leave overnight in the refrigerator to settle.
I store it in the freezer in 2 or 4 cupbags, laying them flat so it doesn’t take up a lot of space.
Christina’s Chicken Stock
8 lbs chicken pieces, cut (I use drum sticks, thighs or a 2 roasters cut in pieces)
4 carrots, cleaned, unpeeled
4 celery stalks, cleaned
2 large onions, cut skin on
1 small head of garlic, cut in half
4 bay leaves
1 1/2 tablespoon peppercorns
Bunch of parley with stems
6 springs of fresh thyme
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Place chicken pieces, carrots, celery and onion on sheet pans. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in oven for 30-40 minutes
In a large stock pot, add the roasted chicken and vegetables, bay leaves, peppercorns, parsley, thyme and 5 quarts of cold water. Water should cover the chicken bones.
Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
Let stock cool slightly and then separate the liquid from the bones.
Place liquid into large bowls and refridgerate overnight.
Next day, skim the fat from stock and discard and place the stock into containers.
