I know, Valentines Day weekend is upon us and you were hoping for something a little more sexy than chicken stock. Not to worry, we’ll have some fun stuff for you over the weekend. For now though, it is time to get down to the basics. Basics that any serious foodie should always have on hand.
I’ll never forget the first time I noticed a chef making stock. I say the first time I noticed, as I’m sure I had walked past a stock pot hundreds of times in the several kitchens I worked in but never noticed. I was the floor manager of a marina restaurant here on Lake Ontario. The resident chef was a crusty, mean old Dutchman who had very little patience for anything outside of his kitchen and even less for anyone who ventured into it. One day I noticed him loading a chicken carcass and a bunch of veggies into a giant pot. I asked what he was making and he told me he was making chicken stock before shooing me out of his domain.
A big pot of water, chicken scraps and a bunch of veggies. Simmer all day. Strain.
So simple and yet I didn’t start making my own stock until recently.
A decade or so ago, I was growing tired of using store bought chicken stock powder for my turkey gravy so I started to make a turkey stock while I was stuffing the bird. A pot of water, giblets, turkey neck and a few handfuls of whatever veggies we were having with dinner. Simmer all day long, deglaze roasting pan with white wine and add the day’s stock. A bit more wine, some S & P, maybe a bit of sage and you have the best reduction gravy ever. For years I’ve wanted to toss the turkey carcass into our biggest pot, but by the end of Christmas dinner there is no energy left for more work. Only more wine.
Over the past year or so, tetra pak chicken stock has replaced powdered stock mix in our pantry. It is just so darned easy to have ready made stock at hand while cooking. Soups, sauces, gravies are just the beginning. We use stock to cook veggies, in mashed potatoes and even in risotto. Why are we buying stock instead of just making it from our scraps like every experienced chef has done for years?
This Christmas I took the entire carcass and tossed it in the big black pot, along with a couple of onions, a celery end, some carrots and a bunch of other stuff I don’t remember. It simmered for most of Boxing Day. The end result was about 2 gallons of turkey stock that lasted us for most of the month of January. All from scraps. We used it to make the best chicken pot pies, a couple of different soups and lord knows what else.
The golden jar you see above was created a couple of days ago with the carcass of a wonderful roast chicken that we actually bought from a local grocer. You know, the ones you see at the doorway looking all golden brown and smelling awesome? Convenient, affordable and easily as good as any bird you might roast at home. Once we were done, I tossed the remnants in the pot with: You guessed it, a bunch of veggies and topped up with water. Simmer forever. Cool, strain. Jar. With a tight lid, it will keep for a few weeks in the fridge. Just as convenient as a tetra pak but without the expense.
There is no recipe. Add whatever veggies you have on hand to the pot. The more variety the better as everything you add builds flavour. In the end, you will be rewarded with a flavourful, golden stock that forms the basis to many great dishes.
