Crockpot Homemade Stock (Bone Broth)
Ingredients:
Turkey carcass or 2 chicken carcasses (see note below)
8 cups of cold water (can use more or less)
2 big carrots (unpeeled)
2 celery stalks
1-2 large onions
1 Tbsp. garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. ACV- apple cider vinegar (optional: see note below)
2 Bay leaves (whole)
1 tsp. oregano, basil, or any herb of choice
salt and pepper to taste (optional: see note below)
Other supplies: wide mouth canning jars, soup ladle, good size strainer w/handle, and plastic bags from the store (to discard what you strained).Directions:
Wash and cut your veggies into big chunks. No need to peel the carrots. Just wash the outside well. Don’t throw away any of the celery. The leaves and all are good for this recipe. Take the outer skin off the onion and leave the rest on. Leaving these parts on the veggies may sound strange. It’s not a big deal because it will all get strained and discarded once your stock is finished cooking. In a 6 qt. crockpot place your carcass, chopped veggies, herbs, seasonings, and ACV. Pour in your water and cover. Cook on LOW 12 hrs. You can stop here or give a good stir and cook again for another 12 hrs. on LOW. It’s up to you if you want to do 12 or 24 hrs. I’ve done both and was pleased either way. Turn off and let cool down for about 30 minutes before you start handling it.
Sit out a few quart-size Mason jars (or I just use clean jars I have sitting around from something like pasta sauce I bought). I use jars with a wide opening so I can place a wide mouth funnel inside. Now place your hand strainer over the top. With a soup ladle carefully pick up the broth, bones, etc. from the crock pot and pour it into the strainer. I use the strainer to catch the bits and pieces I don’t want falling into my stock. These pieces get dumped into a plastic shopping bag I have handy to throw out. This stuff is still hot so be CAREFUL. Use tongs to pick up the bones if your strainer is small (like mine). Continue until you have enough liquid to fill up one of your jars. Do not fill it all the way up. Leave an inch or two of room (so the fat can rise to the top, which I explain below). Let the jar sit on the counter uncovered to cool down. Once it is no longer piping hot put the lid on and let cool down to room temp so you can put it in the refrigerator. Repeat the steps until you have no more stock left. I let my stock sit overnight in the refrigerator so the fat can rise to the top.
The next morning I open it up, scrap the fat off the top, and put it into a labeled freezer bag (or you could just throw it in the trash) to use as cooking fat. The stock gets put into a set of ice cube trays and I let freeze for a few hours. Once frozen I pop out the cubes and place them into a gallon-sized labeled and dated Ziploc bag. Whenever I need some broth I just use however many cubes I need.
8 cubes = 1 cup of broth.
Note: I stopped buying store-bought broth/stock several years ago. I did not know it was so easy and cheap to make your own. You can make a simple broth with just the meaty bones and water or you can make it more nutritious and flavorful by adding cut up veggies. Making it yourself is healthier because you know what you put in it. During the holidays when I cook a turkey, I never throw away the carcass. I keep it and any bones from other parts of it (legs/wings) in a gallon-size Ziploc bag in the freezer until I’m ready to make bone broth with it. Same process when I cook a whole chicken. I keep the carcass and any other bones in a Ziploc bag. Once we eat a second whole chicken I use them both to make a bone broth. Bones from other meats like Beef, Lamb, or Pork can be used to make broth too so save those bones! Bone broth is great to have on hand to replace water for making soups (especially when someone’s sick), cooked rice, gravies, or anything you need broth for. Now that I make my own I have broth all year long instead of waiting until the holidays to stock up on them when on sale.
Another note: Your stock will look different each time depending on what your bird was seasoned with when cooking it. You may get a lighter-colored or darker-looking stock. Also, I notice my stock tends to be more liquid-looking if I don’t use bones with lots of cartilage as well as the ACV which helps to make it more gelatin-like. I do make a clear broth sometimes by using skin on/bone in chicken breasts. I just cook them in plain water until done. I take out the pieces of chicken and lay aside to cool down. I strain the broth and let it cool to refrigerate or use it right away in a dish I’m cooking. As for the chicken, I pull off the skin and bones and put in a Ziploc bag and freezer to use for a new batch of bone broth/stock. I chop or shred the meat and divide it into quart-size Ziploc bags to use for meals like casseroles, fajitas, tacos, burritos, etc.
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