All Stocked Up

For years, I have bought stock or bouillon for my soups.  To be honest, I didn't even realize that you could make your own, let alone, how to.  I was never satisfied with store bought stock because it was pricey, or tasted weird (depending on the brand) which made my soups taste less delicious.  I was also frustrated because I had no control over the salt content, especially with bouillon.  It seems that bouillon is made out of mostly salt...which is probably why it is a much cheaper option than pre-made stock.  Technically, most store bought stock is usually called broth because it contains salt; real from-scratch stock should never contain salt.  Why?  Because stock is just the base for soups and sauces, many of which are reduced down.  If you start with salty stock, and reduce that liquid down, you will have a very concentrated, salty product.  Classic stock is extremely flavorful because it contains lots of aromatics, meaty bones (unless it's veggie stock!), and is simmered for hours in order to extract all the flavors.  
At first, making stock was intimidating to me because of how long stock takes to make.  At culinary school there were always huge pots of stock simmering away all day.  It seemed that I would never have time to make my own if I had to sit around waiting on a stock all afternoon.  And, yes, this still is a concern.  Stock does take time.  However, I have found that with chicken stock especially, it doesn't take all day.  Plus, with the amount of stock that you can make in one go, you don't have to make stock more than once a month!  Just think, if you do have a few free hours in the daytime, and you feel like cooking, stock is one of the easiest and most rewarding project you can undertake!
With homemade stock, you can not only get great flavored stock, but you can do it for less money than store bought stock.  With one chicken, some veggies, and a few herbs, I can make 4-6 quarts of chicken stock which will last me at least a month (but I do make a lot of soup!).  I simply make my stock, fill plastic quart containers with it and freeze them.  They will last about 3 months or longer in the freezer.
The other great thing about making stock at home is that you can put (mostly) whatever you want into it!  Below is a classic stock recipe, but I have tried out a lot of variations depending on what I want to use my stock for.  For example, I make a lot of coconut chicken soup...so my variation would be take out the thyme and parsley, and add in lemongrass, garlic, hot peppers, and cilantro.  If I wanted a Latin-flavored stock, I might put in hot peppers, garlic, and tomatoes.  This way, you can double the flavor of your specific soup with the flavors you want.  
However, there are some things you do not want to put in stock!  Veggies like potatoes or cabbage can overpower your stock in different ways.  Since stock is simmered for several hours, potatoes would break down and make your stock cloudy.  Plus, they do little to enhance the flavor of your stock.  Cabbage, on the other hand, has a very strong, specific flavor and would make your whole stock taste like cabbage.  Remember, you are just making a BASE, not an entire soup!  You can add potatoes and cabbage in the cooking process. :)

Classic Chicken Stock: 4-6 quarts
(for veggie stock, exclude the chicken and add more veggies)
1 chicken carcass (or one whole chicken if you're poaching the meat)
1 cup onion, rough chop
1/2 cup carrot, rough chop
1/2 cup celery, rough chop
1 tsp black pepper corns
1 bay leaf
1-2 sprigs fresh thyme
1-2 sprigs fresh parsley
cold water 

NOTE! Why use cold water when cooking?  Because hot water is more likely to leach heavy metals out of your pipes...which are not good for eating! 

Equipment:
1 large soup or stock pot (A pot large enough to comfortably fit a whole chicken covered with water)
1 mesh strainer
cheese cloth
plastic quart containers (or Tupperware that can hold liquid and be frozen)

Stock Additions: 
garlic, whole
jalapenos (or hot peppers), whole
lemon grass
tomatoes
mushrooms
white wine
lemon or lime juice

Directions:
Create a sachet that contains the pepper corns, bay leaf, thyme, parsley by tying them up in cheese cloth.  Or you can just throw them in the pot, but they will float which will make the stock harder to skim later. 

 Add sachet, chicken, and veggies into a large pot.  Cover ingredients with cold water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. 

(NOTE! You do NOT want to boil your stock.  Boiling stock will release impurities and mix them back into the liquid which makes for a very cloudy stock.  When you see the stock begin to boil, turn down the heat and let it gently simmer.)  Once it has simmered for 10-15 mins, it is time to skim!  Use a spoon (not slotted) to skim off any foam, scum, and fat that rises to the surface.  By removing these, your stock will be clear of impurities and fat. 

 Make sure to skim your stock a few times as it simmers.  Some fat might be left over, but that can be skimmed off once it cools down completely.
Simmer for 4-6 hours.
Note: Sometimes I simmer my stocks for less time (2-3 hours).  Sometimes you don't need the full 6 hours!  Keep tasting the stock to see how flavorful it is, and you can decide when it is done.

Straining stock: 
When your stock is done, put your mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth over a large bowl or container and pour your stock over the strainer.  If you don't have cheesecloth, that is fine, but it's a good idea to consider it because it does a good job of filtering out your stock, making it clearer.

Cooling Stock:
Place your bowl or container in a larger container (or sink) full of ice water.  Cool until no longer warm (about 1 hour).  Stirring the stock occasionally will help it cool down faster.  Pour into smaller containers, then freeze.
OR: Pour hot stock into quart containers (if they are heat safe) and leave out to cool or put into an ice bath.  I use this method, because smaller containers cool down a bit faster.  They can be put right into the freezer once they are cool which will chill them fast.  Don't put hot liquid into your freezer, though, because that will raise the temperature of your freezer which could compromise your other food.  

IMPORTANT NOTE!!
Cooling down your stock fast is CRUCIAL! Food safety guidelines show that most foods should not be left out at room temperature (40-140F) for more than four hours before it is unsafe to eat.  Four hours TOTAL.  This means that if stock is left out cooling for two hours, then it is reheated for a soup and that soup is left out cooling for three hours...it is technically (from food safety standards) no longer safe to eat.  Although these are restaurant standards, it is always good to be conscious of time and temperature!  For this reason, make sure you cool your stock down quickly (around 1 hour)!

I reuse my New Seasons quart containers because they are heat resistant and dishwasher safe. 

Now you have stock!  And it is wonderfully delicious and healthy!  Plus, you've saved money in the process.  What can be better than that?  It is now time to go make some fabulous soups or sauces!