Making Chicken Stock

Recently I have been getting really inexpensive chicken in bulk and freezing it. It so happens whenever I cook either a whole chicken or chicken parts, there are always bones, fat and gristle that can't be eaten, and therefore are often thrown away and wasted. I have been saving them and making really good stock with them.

Stock is made of the juices from the bones and cartilage of an animal, while broth is made just from the juices from the meat of an animal. To me, stock has a better flavor and is better for a person than broth becuase it contains minerals and gelatin that can only be obtained from the bones of an animal.

Making chicken stock is simple to do: 

1. Cook the bird or bird parts in any desired method and serve.

2. When the all the desired meat has been picked off the bones dump the remains from the bird in a large pot I don't bother to pick the bones clean-or remove fat or anything. Simply anything from the bird that I would ordinarily toss goes into the pot.

3. Cover the contents of the pot with warm water.

4. Simmer uncovered on low on the stove for a day (if I start simmering the bones after an evening meal, I will put the whole pot in the fridge overnight, and continue simmering the next day).

5. After the water has receded to about half of it's original height, removed pot from the stove and cool for an hour.

6. Pour the  contents of the pot through a sieve into a plastic storage container and refridge for up to two weeks or freeze up to a year. 

• A layer of fat will surface on the stock which acts as a good preserver of the flavor and barrier against harmful bacteria while the stock is frozen or refrigerated. I usually pick off the fat before using the stock, which actually makes the stock fat free.

It makes my home smell like comfort-if comfort had a smell.

-I have about 2 gallons of stock frozen as a result of cooking my bird bones, and it is great to have on hand for soups, sick folks, casseroles, or gravy. My next step is to consolidate all the broth I have stored in the freezer and can it, so I can save room in my freezer for other things.