I've kept the chicken carcass - now what?

Pink. · 6 March 2007 at 12:23AM

Hi redspot,

To make stock from a chicken I put any leftover chicken (bones, skin and any meat I'm not using for something else) into the oven in the roasting dish to brown........this really helps the flavour of the stock.

Then put the lot into the slow cooker........I also throw in any left over veg or half dead bits of veg you find in the bottom of the fridge. (I keep the ends of vegetables and peelings in the freezer specifically for making stock).

Cover it with water and leave on overnight.

Strain the liquid into a pan and discard all the bones/veg etc.

Put the pan onto the hob and boil to reduce it to a smaller amount (if you intend to freeze it) as it takes up less room in the freezer.

A good stock will be jelly like when cold.

If you are making stock on the hob, after browning the bones and adding water and veg, quickly bring it to the boil and then reduce the heat and let it simmer for at least four hours.

I hope this helps.

Pink

rygon · 6 March 2007 at 5:33AM

The way i make stock is to put the chicken carcas +skin and any meat in a pan and fill with water so the level covers all the carcas. I add black pepper and a couple of bay leaves and boil for a couple of hrs. Tkae the caras and skin out and leave the meat in.

I normally then either

chopped potatoes, mixed veg and a few herbs
spaghetti and peas, with parsley and olive oil

this time ive put in spaghetti, chopped potatoes, mixed veg, onion, parsley, nutmeg and a green chilli

charlies_mum · 6 March 2007 at 8:08AM

I put the whole carcas into the slow cooker, covered with water and put in the stalks and tops off my veg and left for about 3 hours. I then strained the juice and took the meat off the bones, added some chopped veg and onions and simmered for about 20 minutes. Seasoned with salt and pepper and as I thought it needed something else, put in some garlic, but think I might have overdone it :eek:

Having it for lunch with some HM bread, so will let you know what it is like

mummyof3_2 · 6 March 2007 at 12:30PM

Does any one wait for the stock to cool and then skim the fat off?

I've tried it both ways and found not skimming the fat off, way too yucky and skimming the fat of left not much taste x

madmum33 · 6 March 2007 at 12:45PM

I usually remove the skin as that is the fatty bit, fry the bones then cover with water and boil - I never found it needed hours, maybe one hour just to get the flavour out of the carcass. If there are any bits of meat on the bones, pick it off and put back in the stock when you add the veg (lots of onion, celery, carrots for the best flavour!). If there's any scummy stuff on the top I skim that off.

I always add seasoning - salt, pepper, garlic and sometimes herbs.

thriftlady_2 · 6 March 2007 at 2:43PM

Charlie's mum (my OH is called Charlie - you aren't my mil are you ?:D ) what you are making is chicken stock not chicken soup. You will end up with lovely stock which will be a brilliant ingredient in a soup. However, don't expect it to taste fantastic on it's own

.

For chicken soup fry some onions and other veg you fancy like leeks, celery, garlic and carrots in olive oil or butter. Add a tbsp of flour to make a sort of paste. Then gradually stir in the chicken stock. Add some chopped cooked chicken and maybe barley if you like. Don't forget salt and pepper. The flour will thicken the soup making it like a cream of chicken soup. If you want a more brothy soup leave out the flour.

charlies_mum · 6 March 2007 at 4:11PM

Hi Thriftlady,

No, definitely not your MIL, Charlie is my dog

The soup wasn't too bad, I put in a couple of stock cubes as well and this helped with the flavour.

Still think there is too much garlic though, so I won't have to snog George Clooney tonight :rotfl:

katmad99 · 13 March 2007 at 1:40PM

hi, this might seem like a really stupid question...
i'm about to make a roast chicken (first ever time!!) and once i've used up all the meat (stir fry, sarnies, etc...rubber chicken style) i would like to make stock from the 'carcass' (makes it sound a bit greusome!) to then use in risotto recipes.... and i understand how to make the stock then cool it and keep it in the fridge, but when i want to use it for risotto do i have to reheat it on the hob? I usually use a stock cube and boiling water, so presumably i'd have to heat up the cooled stock to add it to risotto. How long do i have to heat it up for??? I know you have to reheat chicken thoroughly for safety, does the same apply to chicken stock??
thanks x

susank · 13 March 2007 at 1:46PM

I never use flour in my soup =- lots of veg and lentils thickens up the soup fine and use potato masher or stick blender to blend smooth and thick - lovely stuff

Lazy_Ike · 13 March 2007 at 1:59PM

katmad99 wrote: »

when i want to use it for risotto do i have to reheat it on the hob? I usually use a stock cube and boiling water, so presumably i'd have to heat up the cooled stock to add it to risotto. How long do i have to heat it up for??? I know you have to reheat chicken thoroughly for safety, does the same apply to chicken stock??
thanks x

When making risotto your stock should always be hot, and added a ladle at a time, let absorb, and then add another ladle and so on. I bring HM stock up to boil, then keep simmering beside risotto, adding as above.

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I've kept the chicken carcass - now what?

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