I much prefer to make my own chicken stock and this stock will come out with a fairly deep dark and rich color with a lot of flavor if you do it right. Care must be taken during the roasting of the bones to not burn them but brown them thoroughly to produce those qualities I describe.
Why do I prefer to make my own? Pretty simple actually. Ever read the label of some of those store bought broths and stock. More artificial colorings, additions, seasonings and preservatives than I feel is good for you. Besides you are going to make your house smell so good!
For a source of bones to make the the stock here are a bunch of suggestions. First off when I make chicken wings, buffalo, spicy, savory, sweet, thai sticky or other wing productions I will take off the wingtips put them in freezer bags and stick them in a freezer until I have a bunch of them. If I have left over whole chicken I’ll throw that in after I’ve browned off other chicken. Supermarket rotisserie is a good source. As far as outside the pantry I’ll look at buying wings, chicken necks, chicken necks or chicken feet (called chicken paws in NJ for some reason).
I don’t advise roasting the chicken feet but the rest of the parts I’ve described can be roasted off until dark.
A variant of this recipe adds star anise, garlic and ginger to the seasoning mix especially if I plan to use this stock with ramen.
- 10 lbs of assorted chicken parts as described in the article
- 2 carrots broken into pieces
- 2 large onions quartered
- 1 large leek chopped rough
- 2 celery stalks including leafy tops coarsely chopped
- 6 parsley sprigs
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp whole pepper corns
- Preheat an oven to 425F (220C)
- In a large roasting pan spread the chicken parts (except chicken feet).
- Roast until browned but not burned turning occasionally so all parts brown. This takes about 2 hours.
- Place parts in a 20 quart stock pot along with the chicken feet.
- Place the vegetables in the same roasting pan
- Roast until browned turning occasionally to allow vegetables to brown evenly.
- Add the vegetables to the stock pot.
- Deglaze the roasting pan with 1 cup of water
- Scrape up brown bits from pan with a wooden spoon
- Add brown bits and deglazing water to the stock pot
- Add water to the stock pot ensuring all chicken parts and vegetables are covered.
- Bring to a boil; skim any grey foam that forms on the surface.
- Add the seasonings and reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 8 hours skimming the fat from the surface occasionally.
- Cool slightly and strain broth through cheese cloth discarding any bones, cartilage, vegetables and seasonings.
- Pour into shallow pans
- Cool the pans in cool water and/or ice.
- Refrigerate to cool further until chilled.
- Skim fat once chilled from the surface.
- Pour into quart containers and seal.
- Refrigerate up to 3 months or freeze up until six months.
