Brown Chicken Stock Recipe

This rich, luscious stock is a wonderful foundation for sauces, gravies, soups, and braises.

Servings: 3-4 quarts

5 lbs. chicken parts (necks, backs, carcasses, wings, bones (what ever you have or have save over.)

2 yellow onions, roughly cubed

3 large carrots, peeled and roughly cubed

2 celery stalks, roughly cubed

Water to cover

3 garlic cloves, crushed with peel on

1 bay leaf

4 thyme sprigs

10-12 parsley stems

8 whole black peppercorns

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400o F.

Place the chicken parts in a Shallow Roasting Pan and place in oven to roast for about 20 minutes or just starting to brown.

Add onions, carrots, and celery to roasting pan and toss together with the bones.

Return pan to oven and roast for another 10-15 minutes or until the bones and vegetables are all browned.

Remove contents from roasting pan and place in a deep stock pot on the stove.

Drain off any grease from roasting pan and then place pan on stovetop over high heat.

Add about an inch of water to the pan and as the water simmers scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.

Add the contents of the roasting pan to the stock pot with the bones and vegetables.

Add enough water to the pot to cover the contents by about 2 inches.

Turn the burner on high and bring the pot to a rapid simmer.

Once simmering, turn the heat under the pot down and use a ladle to remove the froth that rises to the surface.

Place the remaining ingredients in a piece of cheesecloth and tie into a bundle with kitchen twine.

Add to the stock pot.

Allow the stock to remain at a slow simmer for about 3 hours, adding more water if the water level goes beneath the solid contents of the pot.

Strain the stock into a cheesecloth lined strainer and press gently to extract as much liquid as possible from the solids.

Cool the stock down completely over an ice bath and then place in the refrigerator until chilled and the fat has solidified on the surface.

Lift the fat from the surface of the stock and store the stock in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.~~Al (Alex-Alexander) D Girvan.