Homemade stock costs almost nothing, because it’s made from things you’d otherwise throw away. It makes soups, risottos, gravies and stews taste noticeably better — and you control the salt.
Start a scrap bag
Keep a large freezer bag in the freezer and add trimmings as you cook. When it’s full, it’s stock day.
- Save: onion and shallot ends (skins add colour), carrot peelings and tops, celery leaves and ends, leek greens, mushroom stalks, herb stalks (especially parsley and thyme), and a parmesan rind.
- Leave out: cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts, which make stock bitter and sulphurous; potato peelings, which make it cloudy and starchy; and anything mouldy or slimy.
Chicken stock from a roast carcass
- Put the carcass (and any bones from plates) in a large pan with a couple of handfuls of veg scraps, a bay leaf and a few peppercorns.
- Cover with cold water and bring slowly up to a gentle simmer. Hard boiling makes stock cloudy and greasy.
- Skim off any foam that rises, then simmer very gently for 2–3 hours, topping up with water if needed.
- Strain through a sieve and press the solids to get every drop.
Vegetable stock
Cover your scraps with cold water, bring to a simmer and cook for 45–60 minutes. Vegetable stock doesn’t improve with hours of cooking — after about an hour it starts to taste stewed. Strain well.
Don’t salt it yet
Leave the stock unsalted. You’ll often reduce it in a sauce, which concentrates any salt. Season the finished dish instead.
Cool and store it safely
- Cool the stock quickly by splitting it into smaller containers or standing the pan in a sink of cold water.
- Keep it in the fridge and use it within a couple of days. Lift off the fat that sets on top if you prefer a lighter stock.
- Freeze it in portions for up to about three months. Ice-cube trays are perfect for small amounts to loosen sauces.
Ways to use it
Soups and risotto are obvious, but try cooking rice, couscous or lentils in stock instead of water, adding a splash to pan sauces and gravy, or making a quick noodle soup with leftover chicken.
The carcass came from a roast? Our leftover roast chicken ideas use up the rest of it too.