The #1 reason to make your own chicken stock...

May be because you can reduce it down to this, a thick gelatinous chicken jus that tastes delicious on any meat. I would even eat this with asparagus. You just can't get this from reducing canned stock, which doesn't have the necessary gelatin.

To make this I simply took about two cups of frozen chicken stock and boiled it down. When I made my stock a few months ago, I roasted the bones for a long time, and really browned them up well, therefore making the stock really rich and hearty. If you didn't do this but still want a rich chicken jus, roast some chicken bones, deglaze the pan by throwing in some mirepoix, browning those veggies, and then deglazing that with the stock and cooking the liquid down till its real nice and thick.

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Chicken Stock

My culinary experiments are often a burden on my family. I take more than my fair share of fridge space, counter space, and most recently, freezer space. I've slowly but surely been building a collection of spare chicken bones in the freezer, and directly proportional to this accumulation is my dad's impatience.

I really can't blame him though. Whenever he returns from the grocery store with no place to put the ice cream, I feel a tinge of guilt, and so just last week I decided to unload my stock of bones and make stock.

OK now let's talk stock. Last time that I made chicken stock I only used carcasses. I did get a decent stock, but it really had no body. I wanted to make sure that this one had plenty of body. This wasn't going to be a problem because I had saved lots of uncooked chicken wings for this purpose. Last time I didn't roast the bones, and I got a light, more mild stock. This time I wanted a rich, deep, brown stock. I roasted the bones for about 2 hours at 400 degrees, rotating them a few times to really get them good and brown (my house smelled heavenly btw). I cooked the stock for somewhere around 8 hours at a bare simmer on the stovetop. I added vegetables and herbs during the last hour.

The stock really turned out great. I cooled it in an ice bath in the sink, then let it sit for a day before skimming the fat of the top. The stock underneath was deep brown, and gelatinous. It wasn't thick like jell-o, but it had a nice little jiggle to it.

I'm really happy I made this stock. I do more abstract things like sous vide often now, and making stock takes me back to the basics. It keeps me grounded, ensuring that I'm fundamentally sound. Lastly, it's rewarding. I value making a good stock far more than making good chocolate chip cookies, or baking a good cake. And when you've made a good one, it's a great feeling.

(The unappealing pictures were taken by me)