I like to spatchcock my chickens when I smoke or grill them. This involves removing the backbone and breast bone so the chicken lays flat. You could throw these trimmings out or you can save them in the freezer until you have enough to make chicken stock.
You don’t need to save scraps to make chicken stock. You can buy cheap chicken parts when they are on sale and use those instead of the trimmings.
I made this chicken stock in a slow cooker. You can make it in a large Dutch oven or pot by simmering it for three to four hours instead. I just find a slow cooker is easier because you can throw the stuff in and forget about it.
You can use dried herbs but fresh give a brighter taste. You don’t have to remove the leaves from the stems of the fresh herbs, just throw the whole sprig in.
I put two to three pounds of trimmings in the slow cooker and added:
- 4 sprigs of sage leaves (5 ml (1 tsp) ground dried sage)
- 4 sprigs parsley (10 ml (2 tsp) dried parsley)
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme (10 ml (2 tsp) dried thyme)
- 10 ml (2 tsp) whole peppercorns
- 1 medium onion cut into quarters
- 1 large carrot cut into quarters
- 2 celery stalks cut into quarters
- 2 litres (8 cups) water
Put the slow cooker on low and let it cook for twelve to twenty four hours.
Strain out the chicken and vegetables. Discard the chicken and vegetables and let the stock cool to room temperature.
Cover the stock and refrigerate overnight.
The fat will have hardened on the stock and it will be gelatinous. Carefully skim most of the fat off the stock. I like to leave some fat, it adds to the flavour. However, if you want very low fat stock, you can use a fat separator to pour the stock from under the fat or a turkey baster to suck it out.
I add 25 ml (1 tbsp) of soy sauce to give the stock a better colour but this is optional.
I portioned the stock into smaller amounts and freeze it for future use.
The Verdict
This is a delicious chicken stock that is way better than store bought. However, I don’t add salt. That means it will taste quite bland to the highly salted commercial stocks.
My reasoning is, I want to control the amount of salt in my food and commercial stocks are just too salty. When you are using homemade stock, you may have to add more salt to your recipe.
The Old Fat Guy
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 pounds chicken trimmings or parts
- 4 sprigs of sage leaves (5 ml (1 tsp) ground dried sage)
- 4 sprigs parsley (10 ml (2 tsp) dried parsley)
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme (10 ml (2 tsp) dried thyme)
- 10 ml (2 tsp) whole peppercorns
- 1 medium onion cut into quarters
- 1 large carrot cut into quarters
- 2 celery stalks cut into quarters
- 2 litres (8 cups) water
- 25 ml (2 tbsp) soy sauce
Instructions
- Put all ingredients except soy sauce in a slow cooker.
- Cover and cook at low for twelve to twenty four hours.
- Strain out the vegetables and chicken and discard.
- Let the stock cool to room temperature.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight.
- Skim most of the hardened fat off the stock.
- If not using right away, freeze in small containers.
