Chicken Stock Gone Like Jelly

Lois_and_CK

thriftlady wrote: »

If you put a couple of tbsp of vinegar in the stock 30 mins before you start cooking it apparently more of the calcium is released. you can't taste the vinegar;)

Any type of vinegar?

thriftlady_2

Lois_and_CK wrote: »

Any type of vinegar?

Yep, but I tend to use wine vinegar -I wouldn't use basalmic because of the expense.

Lois_and_CK

thriftlady wrote: »

Yep, but I tend to use wine vinegar -I wouldn't use basalmic because of the expense.

Thank you!

Darn it I wish I had a chicken around.

JayJay14

Lois_and_CK wrote: »

Is it the same theory for a stock made from a ham shank? Because I threw that away too - it was going to be a base for a pea and ham soup. :rolleyes:

yes - thats how they make the jelly for in pork pies (though nowadays they probably cheat and make it with gelatine and no bones)

grimerking

OK, this is what I do...

I've found it is cheaper to buy whole chickens than chicken breast at Tescos. You still get the breasts for about the same price as you would buying a pack of chicken breasts, but you also get the legs, wings and other meat. To save time, I just remove the breasts and legs. I then:

1) Simmer the carcass and leg bones for about 15 minutes in a big saucepan - I only half cover the chicken carcass with water at this stage.
2) Strain the chicken and reserve the liquid.
3) Remove all the cooked chicken from the carcass and put to one side.
4) Return the bones to the liquid and add the chicken skin. Add two chopped carrots, an onion (halved, skin on), two chopped sticks of celery, a bouquet garni and a few peppercorns.
5) Fill pan with additional water, bring to the boil and then simmer for two hours.
6) Fish out the bigger bones and chop them up with a sharp knife/cleaver (I imagine a food processor would do a good job chopping up the bones). Return to the pan and simmer for another couple of hours.
7) Remove from heat and strain through a colander.
8) Strain again through a sieve.
9) Finally, strain through a tea strainer to remove gunk (my dad goes one step further and strains using some kitchen roll in the bottom of a sieve).
10 Allow to cool, then refrigerate.
11) Skim off the solidified fat
12) Reheat the jellied stock slightly in the microwave so that the jelly becomes a liquid.
13) Freeze in icecube trays.

Then, if I think something needs a bit of flavour, such as a stirfry, I simply chuck in a frozen stock cube. Absolutely brilliant with pretty much any meat dish.

Lois_and_CK

JayJay14 wrote: »

yes - thats how they make the jelly for in pork pies (though nowadays they probably cheat and make it with gelatine and no bones)

Thanks! I'll try again then.

Lois_and_CK

grimerking wrote: »

Then, if I think something needs a bit of flavour, such as a stirfry, I simply chuck in a frozen stock cube. Absolutely brilliant with pretty much any meat dish.

If you were going to make a chicken casserole or a soup, how many of your frozen cubes would you use?

thriftlady_2

Lois_and_CK wrote: »

If you were going to make a chicken casserole or a soup, how many of your frozen cubes would you use?

It's really easier to freeze stock in larger amounts if you have room. I freeze it in 15 fl oz (approx) quantities. Two of these is usually enough for a big pan of soup, and probably one for a stew.

Also I only strain it once to get rid of the bones and veg -I don't care if there are little bits of chicken in my stock.

I put it in the freezer as soon as it is cool, I don't bother skimming off fat (it is full of goodness) and I don't let it gel then reheat before freezing -can't see the point of that at all.

grimerking

I put it in the freezer as soon as it is cool, I don't bother skimming off fat (it is full of goodness) and I don't let it gel then reheat before freezing -can't see the point of that at all.

It depends on how you use it. I live alone and find it more convenient to have stock available in small portions. It is much easier to use cubes, rather than defrost too much and then waste/refreeze the remainder.

I skim the fat because I don't want to eat it - heart attack waiting to happen IMHO.

I reheat it before freezing, so that it pours into the icecube trays. It's pretty hard to pour a jelly ;-)

If you were going to make a chicken casserole or a soup, how many of your frozen cubes would you use?

It depends on how condensed you make the stock. The last batch I made, boiled down three carcasses/skin to 1.5 litres of stock, so it is quite strong. I think that this could be watered down about 2:1 - i.e. 1/2 litre of my stock + 1 litre of water = 1.5 litres of stock for a recipe. Your best bet is to make it up in jug and slowly add water until you're happy with the taste. I make my stock without salt, so initially it can taste a bit 'bland' compared to a commercial stock cube (which are mostly salt and about 1% chicken). Once you add a dash of salt, the flavour is far superior to anything you get in a cube.

Lois_and_CK

Thank you!

I bought a chicken yesterday, so I'll start building up my stock of stock :-)