Nourishing Chicken Stock
What makes chicken soup so nourishing? The chicken stock, of course! And it’s so easy.
And chicken stock can be added to so much: sauces, in place of water when cooking rice, your breakfast. Most mornings, I start my day with a hot cup of broth—half boiling water and half cold defrosted broth from the refrigerator.
Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 4-14 hours
INGREDIENTS:
All bones from roasting one chicken or two chicken frames
1 gallon filtered water
3 Tablespoons organic vinegar
2 chicken feet (optional)
Veggie peels (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
Add to a slow cooker or a large pot on your stove top all of the bones leftover from your chicken dinner or two thawed chicken frames plus enough filtered water to cover them. If you have two chicken feet (for a thicker more gelatinous and nutrient-dense broth) and/or vegetable peels (for flavor--I save these in the freezer until broth making day), toss those in, as well.
Add a splash of vinegar to extract minerals from the bones.
Cook on medium until it gently boils. Then cook on low, not boiling, for 4-14 hours.
Strain the bones out and discard the bones. Pour the stock into freezer safe containers and put in freezer.
Tip 1: I sell “stock packs” which includes two chicken frames, plus some feet and necks, perfect for making stock.
Tip 2: Shhh…don’t tell: Sometimes I swap water for broth in my and my toddler’s morning smoothies for some extra protein and nourishment. Frozen banana hides any hint of chicken flavor!
Tip 3: If you still have stock defrosted in the refrigerator after 5 days, freeze it to use later. Unlike stock from the grocery store, the stock you make at home contains no preservatives. Some folks like to freeze their stock in ice cube trays, empty them into a clear freezer bag, and pop them out whenever they’d like some broth.
Tip 4: We save all of our leftover meat bones (beef, lamb, pork, chicken from small local farms) from dinner in a bag in the freezer. Then when we have enough, I make them into a meat stock. If there are a lot of red meat bones, I’ll simmer it for 24 hours.