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DJ...
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- Jan 24, 2007
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But that's exactly what he's trying to make...
Picard - there is no need to add chicken stock. You're making the same thing with all of your ingredients. Here are a few tips:
1 - use a pressure cooker and allow the pressure cooker to cool before opening it. Do not let out the steam as this releases volatile flavour compounds that are built up with all of the pressure.
2 - you can roast the bones and meat a little before using. Just as it begins to char, take it out and use those bones (with a little meat on) to make your stock/broth.
3 - use fresh herbs such as origanum, parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage - but be careful not to overdo it with the stronger herbs as they can over-power the final product. You can add plenty of parsley though.
4 - remember to season with salt. This is more than likely why your broth was bland. Taste and season as you go along. It will take a lot of salt but it's usually a very large pot so don't worry about the quantity. Salt helps to bolster flavour if used correctly, without making it taste salty. The only issue with adding salt from the get-go is that it does make the final product cloudy, but unless you're in a michelin starred restaurant, that really doesn't matter. Adding salt along the way allows the sodium chemical reactions to take place which adds new flavour compounds to every aspect of the dish.
5 - cook your veg first to bring out some of the natural flavour compounds and remember to season at this stage too.
6 - understand why you are using vegetables - you use them for aromatics and a little flavour too. Therefore you want very aromatic vegetables. My preferred combination is: onions (quartered), carrots (chunky), celery (diced fine), and leeks (diced roughly). My herbs and spices: whole black peppercorns, bay leaves, thyme, parsley, and a few garlic cloves that i just crush with a knife.
7 - the trick is a very long cooking process if you don't have a pressure cooker. The stock will need to simmer for about 8 hours for a decent stock, topping up with water as and when necessary to keep the bones submerged. You need quite a lot of bones. Don't listen to those telling you that 3 hours is far too much - it simply isn't in this case. Protein denaturing in liquids takes a considerable amount of time and the flavour inside the bones takes an age to break down and incorporate into your soup. In a pressure cooker it will take about 3 to four hours.
8 - if you put it in the fridge then the fat will congeal on the surface which will make it really simple to skim off. This will prevent it from turning rancid while you store it. This is a very important step. And while it is cooking you will need to skim the scum off of the top of the stock.
9 - if you want to intensify the flavour then you can reduce the stock by boiling it after you've drained and skimmed it. You can reduce it to whatever intensity you like.
10 - if you want to freeze the stock, then I suggest freezing it in ice-trays as you cannot re-freeze it once thawed. The ice-trays means you can use them one-by-one. It can be frozen for around 3 months.
11 - a bit of a chef's secret is chicken feet. They are really good for making chicken stock and they fit in the pot very easily. Because their cartilage breaks down into gelatin, it helps to add considerable body to the stock and also makes it very easy to use afterwards. It also helps to prevent that layer of fat forming on the surface after being in the fridge. BUT, and this is a big but - this stock will contain fat nonetheless and therefore won't last as long in the freezer. I wouldn't want to hold on to this stock for more than a month in the freezer.
12 - if we really want to be pedantic about this, simmering chicken meat is how you make a technically correct broth, whereas boiling bones (with a tiny amount of meat on the bone) is how you make a stock. I prefer to blur those lines as I don't see the point in separating these flavours from each other.
I always have this around in the freezer as I use it in a number of dishes. You can use it as a base for soups where you can then get adventurous or in sauces. You can replace half the milk in a bechamel with chicken stock and you'll be amazed at the difference it makes. You can replace the water used to make rice with the stock. In fact one of my favourite dishes is pilaf...
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