Chicken Stock

Homemade chicken stock is an essential ingredient for many Italian soups. You will want to master making your own stock in order to make soups with a rich, full flavor. Stocks are not difficult and they can be made in advance and kept in your freezer for months.

Ingredients:

One whole 3 - 4 pound chicken 2 cups onion, diced 1 cup carrots, diced 1 cup celery, diced Bouquet garni: 4 fresh thyme branches 1 bay leaf 12 fresh parsley stems Chop your vegetables and prepare your bouquet garni, then set aside.

Wash chicken under cold running water discarding innards and place chicken in a 6 quart stock pot. Fill with cold water, just enough to cover the chicken, and slowly bring to a boil.

When it comes to a boil, turn down the heat to a slow simmer. Using a large kitchen spoon or a ladle carefully skim the layer of fat and scum that forms on the surface of the stock, being careful not to let the stock continued to boil. If you boil the chicken, the meat will become tough. Add the bouquet garni and your mirepoix mixture, simmer for three to four hours.

After a simmer for 1 1/2 hours, remove the chicken from the pot and place on a sheet or shallow rack to allow to cool. When chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the carcass, being careful not to remove any small bones or cartlidge. Place the meat in the refrigerator for further use. Place the picked bones from the chicken back into the stock pot and simmer for an additional three hours. When the stock is finished, drain and discard the bones and vegetables from the stock, and allow the stock to cool. For low-fat stock, place stock in the refrigerator after it has cooled and chill until the fat hardens on the top and can easily be removed.

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