Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe - The Lavender Homefront (2024)

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Chicken stock is essential to everyday cooking, especially if you’re interested in making gravy, sauces or soups. This homemade chicken stock recipe is pretty simple to make from scratch and is incredibly delicious too. Preserving it through pressure canning is a great way to enjoy this easy and essential recipe all year long.

Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe - The Lavender Homefront (1)

How to Make your Own Chicken Stock from Scratch

Whenever I end up with a bird carcass from thanksgiving dinner, or a random rotisserie chicken night, I throw the bird in a large pot with some vegetables, herbs and peppercorns and let it simmer overnight. The result is delicious broth, perfect for gravy bases, soup basis or added flavor to rice or couscous. It’s also an excellent way of using leftovers.

How Much Chicken Stock Does it Make?

Answer…it varies.

Depending on the size of the carcass and meat left will dictate how much broth you can make. It will also depend upon how long you simmer your chicken stock.

So, what’s the difference between chicken stock and chicken broth?

Stock is cultivated by boiling the carcass of the chicken with some meat still clinging to the bones and connective tissue, along with vegetables and spices.

Broth is simply boiling the meat with vegetables and spices.

Both are boiled for long periods of time, but chicken stock tends to be much hardier than broth. This is due to the gelatin, connective tissue and bone marrow you find in the bones. Stock is much more substantial, thicker, more flavorful and generally more nutritious.

Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe - The Lavender Homefront (2)

What you’ll need to Make Chicken Stock:

  • Chicken carcass (I used the leftovers from a rotisserie chicken)
  • One Onion, chopped in large pieces (If you leave the skin on, it adds extra flavor)
  • Carrots (I usually just throw in whatever I have leftover from when I made a stew or something – 3 or 4 chopped in large pieces)
  • Celery (make sure to add the leafy part for extra vitamins – at least 2 stalks)
  • Now for the herbs: parsley, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves (fresh is best, but dried is fine too)
  • Black peppercorn
  • Garlic
  • Salt
  • Water

Step 1

Place chicken carcass into the stock pot, add vegetables, herbs and peppercorn. Cover with water and simmer on low to medium heat for at a minimum of 4 hours.

I usually simmer overnight as I feel the longer it boils, the more flavorful the broth gets. However, make sure it’s on low enough that it won’t scald and that there is enough water in the pot.

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Step 2

Next you’ll drain the broth and remove all the vegetables and bones. The same type of strainer that you use for pasta will do just fine.

I find it easiest to strain it into a glass mixing bowl with a pourable lip.

Step 3

Then, pour the stock from the glass mixing bowl into mason jars. You will need to pour the chicken stock over cheesecloth to remove any small leaves, peppercorns, pieces of meat or anything else!

Do with the leftovers as you will. Most people will throw it away, but if you have chickens or pigs, go ahead and give it to them. Or, throw the vegetables into the composter!

Step 5

Once drained, place in refrigerator overnight. In the morning skim off any fat or herbs that have accumulated at the top overnight.

Storing Your Chicken Stock

I put my broth in large mason jars and refrigerate for immediate use. Store in mason jars in the refrigerator for up to 4 days

There is also the option of sticking them into the freezer to use at a later time. Just make sure to provide enough room in the jar for expansion. Frozen chicken stock can be stored for up to 6 months.

Another option is to pressure can your stock. Not everyone is comfortable with pressure canning, but it’s a great option if you want to preserve for longer.

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Pressure Canning Instructions

For pressure cooking, once you have skimmed the fat from the chicken stock, reheat the stock and prepare mason jars.

Pour hot chicken stock into pint sized mason jars, leaving 1 inch of headspace.

Wipe the rims and add the lids with rings to your jars.

Processing Pressure on Canner: 10lbs weighted gauge or 11lbs dial gauge. Be sure to adjust for altitude when over 1000 feet.

Adjusting Altitude for dial gauge Pressure Canner

Pressure to be used

0 – 1000ft / 11lb
1001-2000ft / 11lb
2001-4000ft / 12lb
4001-6000ft / 13lb
6001-8000ft / 14lb
8001-10,000ft / 15lb

Adjusting Altitude for a weighted gauge Pressure Canner

Pressure to be used

0 – 1000ft / 10 lb
1001-2000ft / 15lb
2001-4000ft / 15lb
4001-6000ft / 15lb
6001-8000ft / 15lb
8001-10,000ft / 15lb

Process your pint sized jars in the pressure canner for 20 minutes.

The result is absolutely beautiful and incredibly tasty chicken broth. Enjoy your homemade chicken stock as a base of so many recipes, or enjoy it as a stand alone soup on a cold day.

WANT MORE BASIC RECIPES? Be sure to check out this delicious Classic Turkey Gravy Recipe. You may also love this Dutch Oven No Knead Beer Bread recipe too!

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Homemade Chicken Stock

Simple and delicious, this homemade chicken stock recipe can be made overnight and used for gravies, soup and sauces.

Coursebasics, Soup

KeywordChicken broth, Chicken Stock, homemade broth, homemade stock, How to make chicken broth, what’s the difference between stock and broth

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 1 day

Ingredients

  • 1Chicken carcass
  • 1OnionCut in fourths
  • 3CarrotsCut in half
  • 3Celery stalksCut in fourths with leaves attached
  • 4Sprigs of Fresh Parsley (or 2 tbsp dried)
  • 2Sprigs Rosemary (or 1 tbsp dried)
  • 2Sprigs Thyme (or 1 tbsp dried)
  • 2Bay leaves
  • 1ClovesGarlic
  • 1TbspBlack peppercorns
  • 2TspSalt
  • 8-10CupeWaterOr until all contents are submerged

Instructions

  1. Place chicken carcass in a large pot.

  2. Chop in large pieces: onions, carrots and celery. Add to pot.

  3. Add to the pot parsley, rosemary, thyme, salt, garlic, peppercorn and bay leaves.

  4. Submerge all contents in water. (About 8-10 cups of water) and turn stove on high.

  5. Once boiling lower to simmer and allow to simmer overnight. (About 8 hours)

  6. Once simmer is done, drain into a large mixing bowl with a pouring lip on rim. Throw away or compost veggies and bones. Cover stock and refrigerate for 5 hours.

  7. Skim off all fat and herbs that have accumulated overnight with a spoon.

  8. Strain stock through a cheesecloth into mason jars to get rid of any small leaves and anything else.

  9. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for 6 months.

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Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe - The Lavender Homefront (2024)

FAQs

What are the four essential parts to a good chicken stock? ›

What are the 4 main components of a chicken stock? To get the most nutritious, flavor-packed chicken stock, you'll need water, chicken bones, aromatics (onion, carrot, celery, and garlic) and herbs (bay leaf and parsley).

How long should you simmer chicken stock? ›

Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer: Bring to a boil on high heat and reduce to a low simmer. If scum rises to the surface of the pot (this usually happens in the first half hour of cooking), skim off with a large metal spoon. Let simmer uncovered at a low simmer for 4 to 6 hours.

What part of the chicken is best for making stock? ›

The wings produced the stock with the most body, which makes sense, given the number of cartilage-rich joints in each wing. But the flavor was also not as chicken-y as that of the breast stock. Bones also made a stock with a less distinct chicken flavor, but they contributed some bass notes that were pleasant.

What is the most important ingredient in a stock? ›

Nourishing Element – The most important ingredient of a stock. This is where the flavor, nutrients, color, and most often gelatin come from. Gelatin is an essential part of a stock that is produced when the connective tissue in the bones break down. Gelatin is what gives a stock its body.

How long to boil bones for stock? ›

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for at least 10-12 hours, or until reduced by 1/3 or 1/2, leaving you with 6-8 cups of bone broth. The more it reduces, the more intense the flavor becomes and the more collagen is extracted. We find 12 hours to be the perfect cook time.

Why do you put vinegar in chicken stock? ›

Whether it's white wine or vinegar, a touch of acid added to the simmering pot will create a richer finished product. That's because acid helps break down the cartilage and other connective tissues in the bones of the chicken, which helps speed up the formation of gelatin in the stock.

Can you boil stock too long? ›

When it comes to cooking time at least. There's a limit to how much flavor a given ingredient will impart—past that, extra time just turns everything to mush. Big beef or lamb bones can be cooked for up to eight hours, or overnight. Chicken bones are more like four to six.

How to make chicken broth more flavorful? ›

Woody herbs like rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage, tarragon, and marjoram release tons of flavor as they slowly simmer in stock. Give them a rinse and toss in a big handful of sprigs per quart of store-bought stock.

Should you start chicken stock in hot or cold water? ›

Easy chicken stock

Place the chicken carcasses, garlic, vegetables, herbs and peppercorns in a large, deep-bottomed pan. Add the cold water and bring to the boil, skim, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Continue to simmer gently for 3-4 hours, skimming as necessary, then pass the stock through a fine sieve.

How do you know when chicken stock is done? ›

Generally, for chicken stock (which is what I make at home the most), when everything is falling apart and the bones are kind of bendy, you have gotten all you can get. This takes about 3-4 hours at a slow simmer depending on the size of chunks you have put into the pot.

Is 2 hours enough for chicken stock? ›

(It helps draw out nutrients and minerals from the bones into the stock.) Simmer the stock for 6 to 8 hours, covered, keeping an eye on it to make sure it stays at a simmer.

Should I add salt when making chicken stock? ›

Do not season your stock with salt. There are two reasons for this. First: Stock is an ingredient, and it's one where, ideally, we're concentrating flavors, so even a mild amount of salt could end up being excessive in the finished product.

How much salt do you put in homemade chicken stock? ›

Now, here's the most important part - if you're going to use the stock right away, you must add salt to taste. I find adding 1 teaspoon of kosher salt per quart of unsalted chicken stock is just about perfect.

Why add vegetables to chicken stock? ›

When I am making a simple chicken stock at home just to enhance the flavor and nutritional value, I add several vegetables in it. Here are some common vegetables you can include: Carrots - add sweetness and depth to the stock. Celery - lends a pleasant herbal smell and subtle bitterness to balance the flavor.

What are the 4 elements of a stock? ›

Investing has a set of four basic elements that investors use to break down a stock's value. In this article, we will look at four commonly used financial ratios—price-to-book (P/B) ratio, price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio, and dividend yield—and what they can tell you about a stock.

What are the four 4 ingredients of a stock? ›

Stocks are prepared with a few basic ingredients including bones, mirepoix, herbs and spices, and sometimes tomatoes or wine. They are often prepared using leftover ingredients as a cost-effective measure for the kitchen.

What are the 4 qualities of a good stock in cooking? ›

It is used to poach fish or vegetables. The quality of a stock is judged by four characteristics: body, flavor, clarity and color. Body develops when collagen proteins dissolve in protein - based stock. Vegetable stocks have less body than meat stocks because they lack animal p rote in.

What are the four important parts of stock? ›

Stocks contain four essential parts: a major flavoring ingredient, liquid, aromatics, and mirepoix. There are many types of stock, including white stock, brown stock, fumet, court bouillon, glace, remouillage, bouillon, jus, and vegetable stock.

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