Chicken stock – a versatile stock for many recipes

This chicken recipe is for a chicken stock. This chicken stock can be used in other recipes such as soups and pies.

Ingredients – as required | Preparation time 2.5hrs

Approx. 500g chicken bones (carcass)
Approx. 100g onion
Approx 100g white of leek
Approx. 100g celery
Approx 100g carrots
Approx. 50g mushroom stalks and peelings
Salt and pepper, to taste
Cold water

For the bouquet garni:

8 parsley stalks
1 bay leaf
12 peppercorns
1 star anise

Mise en place

Make the bouquet garni.
Peel the onion and cut roughly the onion into 2cm dice.
Wash, peel and cut the leek into 2cm dice.
Wash, peel and cut the carrot into 2cm dice.
Wash, peel and cut the celery into 2cm dice.
Take the stalks from the mushrooms and peelings. Save the mushrooms for another dish.

Method

Place the chicken bones into a large saucepan. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil and allow to boil for a few minutes. Carefully drain into a colander and wash the bones under cold water.
Clean the saucepan and replace the bones in. Once again, cover with cold water, add the bouquet garni, onions, carrots, leek and celery and mushroom trimmings. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and simmer the stock for 2 hours, skimming off any scum if necessary. Season to taste.
After around 2 hours, pass the stock through a fine sieve that has been lined with muslin. Correct the seasoning.
For a more intense flavour, return the chicken stock to a clean saucepan and over a low heat allow the chicken stock to gently boil until reduced by about a third.

Use your chicken stock as required or allow to cool, put in a pot and store in your freezer. Don’t forget to label and date the container.

Don’t freeze the chicken stock unless the chicken carcass was fresh, not a frozen one, for we don’t want to refreeze any foods that have already been frozen before.