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Cooking Tips Archive Articles


  • Vegetable Stocks
  • Poultry Stocks
  • Meat Stocks
  • Seafood Stocks

Soup stocks are a great thing to always have on hand.
They can perk up even the dullest of recipes. Even
when your freezer is bare, you can always find either
containers of stock or bags of ingredients waiting to
be turned into stock within its depths.

Stock making is not difficult and since it makes use of
scraps and leftovers that might otherwise be thrown
out, it is very frugal. Keep small containers of stock in
your freezer, so that it's ready at a moment's notice.
Another handy tip is to freeze stock in ice cube trays,
then transfer the cubes to a plastic freezer bag. That
way you have perfectly measured, small amounts of
stock for cooking.

You can save a lot of fat and calories by using stock
for sautéing instead of oils or fat. You can also add
lots of flavor to everyday foods (such as rice) by
substituting stock for water in cooking.

The four main types of stocks are vegetable, chicken,
meat and fish. You can often substitute one for
another in many (but not all) recipes, with little to no ill
affect to the overall recipe. Since stocks can make
use of leftovers or items that might otherwise be
thrown away, you will find it handy to keep bags in the
freezer for collecting ingredients such as vegetable
scraps and meat bones. When you've gathered
enough ingredients, throw on a pot of stock.

You can make any of the following stocks more
intense in flavors by simply simmering them for an
extended period of time until their liquid volume is
reduced.

Of course, you can always buy canned stock.
However, if you try making your own, you may never
go back. It's so simple and inexpensive, there's really
no reason not to.


Vegetable Stock

With the exception of cabbages (which include
broccoli and cauliflower), which can overpower the
flavor of vegetable stock, you can use all kinds of
vegetables for this stock. The flavor will vary slightly,
depending on the mix you use. Tomatoes can also
overwhelm stock flavor, so when you do use them,
you might keep the amount small (unless of course,
you want a strong tomato flavor). Some people feel
that asparagus also overwhelms the stock. Many
chefs don't agree, and find that asparagus adds a
depth and richness to vegetable stock.

Making vegetable stock is a great way to clean out the
refrigerator of food that is less than fresh, don't limit
your stock making ingredients to whole vegetables.
Start saving peels (well washed, of course) and
trimmings while you cook. Your stock will be strained
before being used, and all those unattractive peels will
be gone, but they will have imparted a lovely flavor to
your stock. Some excellent vegetables (and vegetable
scraps) to use are: onions, garlic, potatoes, sweet
potatoes, squash, carrots, celery, mushrooms, peas,
corn (empty corn cobs can also add lots of flavor to
veg. stock), parsley, green beans, beets, bell peppers,
scallions, green onions, shallots, fresh basil or other
herbs, etc., etc.

You can also add some fruit or fruit scraps to your
vegetable stock ingredient mix. Apples, pears and
even pineapple works well.

A good rule of thumb is to have about half solid
ingredients to half water. It's a good idea to throw in a
tablespoon or so of whole black peppercorns and a
bay leaf or two for added flavor. Cover your
ingredients with the water, bring to a boil and let
simmer for about an hour. Cool and strain to remove
any pieces of vegetables, fruit or scraps. That's all
there is to it. You've just made vegetable stock.

You should never add: Some things will simply ruin
what could have been a great stock. The foremost of
these is anything from the cabbage family. Cabbage,
Broccoli, Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts,
Broccoflower, and Bok Choy. These become bitter
and pungent the more they are cooked. They will ruin
your stock.


Poultry Stock

You can buy chicken or turkey parts to make stock
(buy inexpensive parts, such as backs and necks).
Poultry stock is also a great way to use the bones that
are leftover when you de-bone chicken breasts. You
can also use a leftover cooked chicken or turkey
carcass (my what a lovely visual) instead of fresh raw
meat to make stock (in other words, don't throw out
the Thanksgiving turkey's bones, put them to use).
As for the vegetables that go into poultry stock, you
can use whole fresh ones, or save leftover scraps just
like we did for vegetable stock. If you want a darker,
richer stock, roast your poultry, poultry bones and
vegetables in a 450 degree oven for about forty
minutes, before adding them to your stock pot.

So, here's the basic poultry stock recipe (you can use
an approximate amount of scraps instead of the
whole vegetables listed):

  • 4 or 5 pounds of chicken or turkey parts or meaty
    bones
  • 1 large chopped onion
  • 2 or 3 large chopped carrots
  • 3 or 4 stalks celery (the leafy top parts are great
    for stock as well)
  • 6 to 8 chopped garlic cloves
  • 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns

Put all your ingredients into a pot and simmer for
about two hours. Periodically skim off the foam as it
rises to the top of your pot. When finished cooking,
strain the broth and refrigerate for a few hours. Any
fat in the broth will congeal at the top and can be
easily strained off. Your stock is now ready for use or
for the freezer.


Meat Stock

Since you will want most meat stocks to be dark and
rich, roast your meat, bones and vegetables for about
45 minutes in a 450 degree oven, before adding them
to your stock pot and adding water. You can make
meat stock without this step, however, it will simply
have a lighter color and not as rich a flavor.

As with all the stocks here, you can use either whole
vegetables, or scraps, as we did when making
vegetable stock. Just use an approximate equivalent
amount of scraps instead of the whole vegetables.

So, here is a basic recipe for meat stock.

  • 5 to 7 pounds of lean meat and bones (if your pile
    is more meat than bones, use 5 pounds, if more
    bones than meat, increase the amount) - this can
    include beef, veal, lamb, pork, ham (will have a
    distinct smoky flavor), or venison
  • 2 large chopped onions
  • 4 large chopped carrots
  • 4 stalks celery
  • 1 head of garlic, peeled and chopped
  • 2 large chopped tomatoes
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • seasonings (about a tablespoon of each that you
    desire: oregano, basil, thyme) water to cover
    (about a gallon and a half)

Add your ingredients to your stock pot and simmer,
stirring occasionally for about 4 hours. Add more
water if necessary to keep the ingredients covered.
Strain out the solid ingredients and refrigerate stock
for a few hours. The fat layer can easily be skimmed
off the chilled stock, making it ready for use or the
freezer.


Seafood Stock

Seafood stock comes in handy for many recipes. You
can use any inexpensive white fish scraps, bones and
trimmings (your seafood market or grocery store
probably sells fish packaged for just this purpose).
You can also use crab, shrimp and lobster shells for
adding flavor to seafood stocks.

  • 4 to 5 pounds mild white fish (such as cod or
    halibut) bones and trimmings, and/or shellfish
    shells
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 large onions chopped
  • 4 or 5 chopped garlic cloves
  • 1 stalk celery
  • a tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup chopped parsley
  • 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 1 cup dry white wine (optional)
  • approximately 1 gallon of water

Melt butter in bottom of stock pot and sauté onion,
garlic and celery for about 5 minutes or until soft. Add
remaining ingredients and simmer for about an hour.
Periodically skim off foam that will appear at the top
of pot. Cool and strain out solid ingredients. Your
stock is now ready for use or for the freezer.
Making
Stocks