CHICKEN STOCK BASICS

It's a great time of year to practice stock basics. Creating your own stock is easy, economical, and gives you complete control over ingredients and seasonings. We will start with chicken stock because it is the most commonly used. The basic technique is foolproof. Future blogs will cover vegetarian and beef stocks.

If you have a local butcher shop, you can purchase necks, backs, and wings for stock making and skip "doing it yourself". But TRY this at least once--it's good for self esteem and fun to show off an impressive new skill to your partners and dinner guests. You will be able to do prep the chicken in 10 minutes or less with a little practice.

This technique also works for duck stock (divine) and turkey stock.

Equipment needed: stock pot or large sauce pan, sharp knife, slotted spoon for stirring and skimming, and a strainer for the end product.

CHICKEN STOCK TECHNIQUES

Buy a whole 4 pound + chicken (our Costco sells the ideal birds in a packet of two for about $9 depending on total weight.) One substantial fryer/roaster will yield 6-8 quarts of tasty stock for your favorite soups and sauces, plus two fantastic breasts for a second meal preparation, and two leg/thigh segments for a third meal. These economical benefits are not to be overlooked in a recession!

Thaw bird if it is frozen and remove neck, liver, heart, and gizzard from inside the cavity. Add the neck to the stock and discard the rest. (I don't use livers at all--they cloud the stock and may contain undesirable elements as a result of their biochemical body processing functions.) Rinse the carcass under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.

Place bird on a clean plastic (synthetic) cutting board, breast side up. (see photo). Safety tip: Do not cut any raw poultry, meat, or fish on wooden boards or wood counter tops. Wood is porous and impossible to sanitize and runs risk of holding bacteria (always present) that will contaminate other foods and potentially cause illness. Invest in a couple of synthetic, dishwasher safe cutting boards to always have a clean one ready. If you don't have a dishwasher, wash all cutting boards, knives, and counter tops in HOT soapy water immediately after use.

Separate the parts. Now just dive in! There is no wrong way to do this--but a few tips and pictures help out.

Make a shallow cut along the breast bone. Starting on one side tease the meat away from the rib cage with the tip of the knife, grasp it with your free hand, lift it away slightly and let gravity assist you. Continue cutting the breast away from the rib cage until it falls free. Repeat on the other side (see photo). Set breasts aside, leaving skin on, for later use. Cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate immediately for use within 1-2 days OR wrap well and freeze. Remove skin at time of cooking (see photo for skin removal tip with a bit of paper towel).

Next, lift the carcass by one leg (see photo) and feel the hip joint with your fingers. The weight of the chicken body makes the joint easy to find. Cut through the outside muscle and using your knife, separate at the hip joint, cutting any skin as necessary. Repeat with the other leg. Set thigh/legs, skin on (to preserve moisture) aside for later use. Refrigerate immediately for use within 1-2 days OR wrap well and freeze. Remove skin (if desired) just prior to cooking, as above.

Now you have stock parts! Break the carcass down a little, cut off wings, and split the body cavity front to back (either flatten with the heel of your hand and pull apart or use a knife, to expose more cooking surface. Cut off the "Pope's Nose" (that little triangle tail piece) and discard because it is full of oily stuff birds use to grease their feathers.

Place the stock parts in the stock pot. Rinse parts again with cold water if you think they need it. (See photo of stock pot ingredients).

A combination of aromatic vegetables (Fr. Mirepoix) are basic to stock making. Use raw carrots, celery, onions, leeks, which may or may not be "perfect"--remember that thrifty French housewives never waste anything. Stock is boiled, so goodness is extracted and germs killed. French cooks also tie up a little cheese cloth bag of herbs (Fr. Bouquet Garni) to further enhance flavors. Simply add everything you want directly into the pot and STRAIN at the end of cooking. Who has time for tying up herbs in little bags?

Following the chicken, add:

3 large carrots, rough chopped (2 inch long pieces OK)
3 stalks celery (darker green the better) rough chopped
1 large onion, quartered
Optional substitute: 3 large leeks, cleaned, trimmed and sliced
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme, or 3 fresh or dry sprigs
Sprig of dry sage (careful---it's intense)
1 bunch parsley (grocery store size--dry parsley adds nothing)
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
2 teaspoons salt (necessary to extract flavor from the bones)

Cover all with cold water exceeding top of ingredients by at least one inch. You can always reduce stock later. Bring pot to a boil and skim off any cloudy particles floating on top. Reduce heat and gently simmer, partially covered for 90 minutes--or more--you can't overcook this. It's done when meat falls off the bones. Remove from heat and let stand until cool enough to strain.

Strain all through any kitchen strainer or colander to remove all solid ingredients. Discard them. Catch liquid in another basin or kettle. Chill and remove fat which will congeal on the surface. I chill stocks (covered) in my garage in winter but it can be done in the refrigerator as well. If you need to use stock immediately, let stand a few minutes after straining and skim fat with a large spoon. This isn't as effective as chilling at getting it all, but it works.

Congratulations! You have several quarts of beautiful liquid that you made yourself and can use any way you wish. Divide stock into containers and freeze what you don't need right now. Stock keeps refrigerated up to a week, but if you keep it that long, bring to a boil before use. Frozen stock kept in a deep freeze will keep for months--if you don't use it up too fast! Please label and date containers to help remember what it is.

Next time: Using stock for many dishes.

KGC