Chicken Stock

CHICKEN STOCK

Makes 2 cups or 6 cups stock and approximately 4 ½ cups shredded chicken meat

2 carrots, cut in 2 inch chunks, or 8 baby carrots left whole
1 onion, cut in 4 wedges, then each of those wedges cut in half
2 stalks celery, cut in 2 inch chunks
Put cut vegetables in the bottom of the slow cooker.
1 whole broiler-fryer chicken (these typically run between 3 and 5 pounds)

Remove the gizzard and innards from the cavity of the chicken. You can use these in the stock or save them for another use (or discard). Rinse the chicken under running water, both the outside and the cavity of the bird. Lay the bird on top of the vegetables in the slow cooker.

1/2 cup or 4 cups water
(1/2 cup to make 2 cups of super-concentrated;
   4 cups to make 6 cups normal strength stock)
1 tsp salt (optional)
1 tsp peppercorns (optional)
other optional additions you might try, individually or in combination:
  bay leaves, garlic cloves, whole cloves, thyme, oregano, rosemary, sage,
  gingerroot, dried hot chilies, saffron

Add water to the slow cooker. Add seasonings if you so desire (it’s quite flavorful even if completely naked of seasonings). Put the lid on, and cook for 8-10 hours.

1 bunch parsley (optional)

Ten to twenty minutes before ending cooking, add the parsley for a boost in mineral ions in the stock.

It is done when you can pull a drumstick off the chicken almost effortlessly, or to put it another way, when the meat is falling off the bones.

Using a wide slotted spoon (I use a Chinese wok strainer spoon), lift the whole chicken out of the pot into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate the chicken until it is cool enough to handle comfortably.

Pour the stock through a large mesh strainer into a spouted heat-resistant bowl or pitcher or pan. This will remove the large chunks of overcooked vegetables and sediment. Discard these.

Set up a large bowl with a strainer over it. You can either line the strainer with 4 layers of cheesecloth, or line it with a coffee filter. The coffee filter will take longer, but will defat the stock at the same time as it strains out the sediment, and will also give a wonderfully clear broth. The downside of a coffee filter is that it will need to be changed frequently during the straining process, as the pores will become too clogged to allow any stock to flow through. The downside of cheesecloth is that the stock is still a bit cloudy, but the taste is just fine. If you strain through cheesecloth, the stock will still contain chicken fat, which will rise to the surface when the stock is refrigerated. (Why so particular in straining? In traditional stovetop stock preparation techniques the stock is first brought to a boil and the foam that rises to the top is skimmed off. Then the heat is turned low and it is simmered for several hours. In the slow cooker, it never comes to a boil, so you don’t get the scum skimming during cooking – instead it is strained out afterwards. Another difference between the slow cooker and stovetop methods is that you don’t lose any water to evaporation, so you actually end up with more stock than the amount of water you started out with.)

Pour the stock through the lined strainer. When it is all strained, refrigerate it until you need to use it. You can see that you have gotten all the great nutrition from the bones of the chicken after the stock has refrigerated a few hours. The super-concentrated stock will be a loose jello consistency, while even the normal strength stock will thicken as it cools, just not quite as dramatically.

To process the chicken meat, simply use your fingers to pull the skin off and then separate the meat from the bones and gristle. (Discard the skin, bones and gristle.) As I’m pulling chunks of meat off, I shred and tear it into bite-size pieces. There is enough meat for two typical recipes, so you might use half immediately and freeze half. If you don’t use all the broth within 2-3 days, freeze it. I’ve read that you can boil it every third day and thus keep it refrigerated longer without spoiling but haven’t tried that. Instead, I usually make super-concentrated stock unless I’m planning on making soup. If I had more freezer space, I'd freeze it.

Making Stock: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly : http://www.tigersandstrawberries.com/2006/09/05/making-stock-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

By Comparison, packaged Beef Broth, available in 14 oz cans or 32 oz aseptic cartons - http://www.swansonbroth.com/ourproducts.aspx

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