Recipe: Homemade Stock/Broth

Homemade Chicken Stock for the soul......and my belly.  I love making a giant pot of stock and add a little into almost every dish I make. Broth is one of those staples that you always want to have on hand in your kitchen. It adds flavor, color, and richness to your cooking. 

Here's a guide for when you can get away with stock, instead of water.

1. Rice and Other Grains (Farro, Barley, Etc.) Use stock to cook your grains.

2. Ragu and Pan Sauces. Add a cup to a pot of tomato sauce or to deglaze pan sauces.  After sautéing chicken breasts in a skillet, deglaze with a splash of broth or stock to loosen the bits on the bottom of the pan. Adding stock gives your sauce a rich deep flavour.

3. Braising pot roast or short ribs in beef stock will make them more flavorful.

4. Soups and Chili 

Homemade Stock/Broth

Prep Time: 15 minutes 
Cook Time: 1 Hour 
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes 
Author: Mary Mammoliti | Kitchen Confession 

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 large red onion, diced

• 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch rounds 

• 2 stalks celery, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

• 3 cloves garlic, chopped

• 2 cups clean vegetable scraps - optional (I used 1 leek and 1 cup mushroom stems)

• 2 cups cherry tomatoes

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

• 1 bay leaf

• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

• 1 sprig fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)

• Kosher salt to taste

• Fresh cracked pepper to taste

• Add the bones of a rotisserie chicken for chicken stock

• 11 - 13 cups cold water

Instructions

1. In a large stock pot, sauté onion, carrots, and celery in olive oil over medium/low heat and stirring often for 3-5 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add additional olive oil as needed If your vegetables begin to stick to the pan.

2. Add garlic, cherry tomatoes, tomato past, vegetable scraps if adding them and sauté for 1 additional minute.

3. Add remaining ingredients, top with cold water and slowly bring to just under the boiling point. Adjust heat accordingly. You do not want to boil the stock, slowly heat the mixture to ensure optimal flavour extraction from the vegetables and simmer for one hour.

4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Remove from heat, cool slightly and strain through a fine mesh strainer, cheesecloth or nut bag. Pour into a mason jar, seal the jar and refrigerate 3 to 4 days or you can freeze it and it will last for several months.

Notes

Add a chopped parsnip, mushrooms or a leek if desired.