Soup Stock

I only started to hate buying chicken stock when I no longer had a car.  Hauling even 4 Litres of chicken or vegetable stock was a chore, and it meant I couldn't buy milk at the same time.  It also cost $10 for 4 litres of stock, which just seemed bizarre.

At some point, I decided there had to be a better way.  I turned to the internet for advice.

Chicken and vegetable stock, as it turns out, basically makes itself when you are making a chicken soup.  You boil the bones you were going to throw away, along with the parts of the vegetables you weren't going to use.  You toss it in a big pot with salt, a few spices, and boil it.  Then you strain it!

Here is a recipe for you: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_chicken_stock/

And another: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_chicken_stock/

This is generally how I do it:

• 1 roasted chicken carcass (Safeway chicken for $8.99)
• 1 large yellow onion cut up into chunks (no need to dice)
• 1 tablespoon of diced garlic (you could also just press your own)
• Leftover celery and carrot
• Salt and pepper
• Thyme (small amount)

Sometimes, I am missing carrots or celery, and I just do it up anyways.  If you aren't using the broth for chicken noodle soup, you can get away with it as the base for other soups.  I bring it to a boil and then let it simmer for a few hours before letting it cool and then straining it all out - by far the messiest part of the task.

Of course, I don't put my chicken stock in adorable little mason jars like the ones linked above.  I either make it into a soup right away, or I freeze it in Tupperware.  There are health benefits to making your own stock, and it definitely is less salty.  I can't imagine going back to the canned stuff and think of all the money you can save!

Here is a picture of the messy work!