Today I'll show you a guide for how to prep bone broth or brodo di carne in such a way that you can actually never buy boxed stocks again. Its easy but it is a labor of love and i'll show you how to maximize the yield, create a clear broth and minimize waste. This broth is essential for the two chicken dishes down below. So go check those out as well.
Ingredients (Designed for a 12-quart Stockpot)
1 3-4 Lb Whole Organic Chicken or 2 Chicken Carcasses
½ Lb Organic Chicken/Turkey Legs/Chicken Feet/Necks
1 lb of Beef Shanks/Veal Shanks/Beef Marrow Bones/Neck Bones/Oxtails/Knuckles
½ Lb Grass-Fed Beef Shins
2-3 Onions, halved with skins left on
2 Carrots
2 Celery Stalks
1 Head Garlic, split in half
3 Bay Leafs
Cold Water
Crushed Black Pepper Corn
Optional Additions
Organic Chicken Carcass (I used 2)
Cooked Rotisserie Chicken Carcass from the store
Parmigiano Cheese Rind
Rosemary Sprigs
Thyme Sprigs
Sage
Dried Mushrooms
Leeks
Parsley Stems
Mushrooms Stems
Onions tops
Carrot tops
Carrot skins
Tomato Skins
Potato Skins
Scraps to keep in the freezer
Parsley Stems
Mushrooms Stems
Onions tops
Carrot tops
Carrot skins
Tomato Skins
Potato Skins
DIRECTIONS
In a 12 qt stock pot placed on the stove, place all the meat in the bottom of the pot, fill up with cold water and bring up to a gentle simmer. I like to wait to add the vegetables because as the broth comes up to a simmer, all of the impurities from the bones and meat will rise to the top and accumulate and when you don’t have a lot of stuff in the pot, it's easier to skim the “scum” out of the broth, which is the most important aspect of making a clear broth.
It will take some time for the broth to get up to a simmer and while it does, every so often check on it, skim the scum and excess fat off the top and just begin the process of getting your stock nice and clean.
Once the broth is simmering, you’ll notice the scum accumulate faster, keep cleaning it, and once you notice it has slowed down somewhat, then gently add the rest of the aromatic vegetables. Bring it back up to a simmer. The main ingredients listed are my suggestions for a neutral stock. I want to use this for tortellini en Brodo so I don’t really want strong rosemary and thyme flavor, but if I was making this for Thanksgiving, I would definitely add rosemary and thyme, as I know it will go well with the final product.
Cook the broth for 10-24 hours, checking every so often to clean and scum or fat and to ensure the broth is simmering. We DO NOT want this to boil. Boiling will disturb the meat and cloudy the broth. I like to cook it for a minimum of 10 hours and up to 24. It takes around 24 hours to fully extract all the flavor out of the meat and bones. Alternatively, You can strain the broth after 10-12 hours, then fill the pot back up with water and create a second stock, allowing you to get much more yield, which is what I like to do.
Once the stock has cooked for about 12 hours, it's time to strain. The stock should be beautifully clear, aromatic and slightly golden. The best tool to strain this is a fine mesh strainer or a “chinois”. Otherwise use a strainer with cheesecloth.
Strain into a smaller pot, try to get as much stock out as you can without disturbing the meat. Ladle the broth from the stockpot into the smaller pot. Don’t pour the stock into the strainer at this stage. Once you’ve strained out most of the broth, fill the pot back up with cold water gently and then bring that second stock up to a simmer, treat it just like the first and cook that overnight. The next day we will strain that and then reduce that by 80% and use that just for sauces.
While the second stock is getting started, using quart containers or whatever you want to store the broth in. I like to portion out about 3 quarts (equivalent to 3 boxes of stock or broth). Cool those down in an ice bath as quickly as you can. These will be perfect for soups, risotto, braises and of course, tortellini en Brodo. The rest of the broth in the pot goes back on to the heat, bring it up to a boil and reduce that by half to create a double strength Brodo. Once it has reduced to where you want it, store in quart containers and then cool them down in an ice bath. This is a more potent broth, so if you want a deep, richer broth, you can use this one. You can also add water to it to create the single strength broth if you run out. Label all the containers appropriately and date them then either put them directly into the freezer and store for around 6 months or chill in the fridge overnight in order too easily de-fat the stocks the next day and then store them in the freezer.
At this stage, I’ll check my second stock, make sure the stock is on the lowest setting possible and then go to sleep. In the morning I’ll strain the broth into a smaller pot again, this time, not so concerned about the clarity of the broth so you can strain it all into the pot. At this point, the veg and meat should be completely drained of all its flavor and nutrients and can be discarded. Get the strained second broth back on the stove and reduce it by 80%-90% to create a Demi glaze or “half glaze”. This will intensify and thicken the broth which will allow us to make pan sauces almost instantly by doing the reducing now rather than at the time of making a meal.
Once it's reduced, pour it into ice cube trays or small containers and then cool down, label and either chill in the fridge to defat or toss in the freezer. The Demi should be so gelatinous that it will solidify into what looks like jello, making it easy to cut up and portion out so you can easily grab a few and make a sauce at any time.
You should end up with around 7-8 quarts of broths at varying strength.
Your support keeps the show running and is very much appreciated.
If you'd like to leave a donation for this recipe, please click HERE. Thank you!