Homemade Chicken Broth

Having homemade chicken broth in your freezer is one of life’s simple joys. It’s super easy to make and it is a great way to use up all those fresh herbs and vegetables you didn’t get around to using. Simply freeze whatever portion you don’t use right away, and then pull it out whenever you want to make a quick soup, stew, or slow cooker meal.

Tip: As you cook throughout the week, freeze leftover edible vegetable and herb stems and scraps in a freezer-safe bag. Use these scraps whenever you make a new batch of stock.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour (or more)
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 large onions, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
3 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1 (5-6 lbs) leftover roasted chicken carcass
Water to cover
8 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 handful whole fresh parsley
Small handful whole peppercorns
Sea salt, to taste

Directions:

Add olive oil to a large stockpot or Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, and celery to heated olive oil and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes, or until the flavor is released.

Place the roasted chicken carcass in the pot and fill with enough water to cover. Add thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, parsley and whole peppercorns. Season with salt, to taste.

Heat over medium-high heat until it just about boils, and then reduce heat to medium-low. Stir and simmer, uncovered, for at least an hour. (The exact amount of time can vary – the longer it simmers, the better the flavor will be).

Place a stainless steel strainer over a large heat-proof bowl or container in the sink. Carefully pour contents of stockpot into the colander to separate out the solids from the liquid.

When cool enough to handle, remove edible chicken meat from the strainer and

set aside to make chicken soup or for another recipe. Discard chicken bones, skin, and fat, along with the vegetables and herbs.

Taste reserved broth and season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Use immediately or allow broth to cool completely before transferring to freezer safe-storage containers. Freeze until ready to use.