Let's Talk About Stock

No, this didn't become an investment blog when you weren't looking. I am talking about soup stock. This process takes time but it so worth it because your soups taste extra good when the stock is homemade. Making stock is a finesse job...it's all in the technique. You need fresh ingredients, the right pot, frequent skimming, simmering (NOT boiling), and proper cooling and storing.

Choose a tall narrow pot for your stock. If your pot is too wide, it invites too much evaporation and you'll be adding water which will dilute the stock.

For meat stocks, you need bones. If you are making a brown stock, roast your bones before simmering; it will enrich the flavor.

I'll need to come back to this...it's the 3rd period of game 6 of the Stanley Cup playoffs...there is no way I can discuss stock right now.

OK, now that the Hawks have successfully captured the Stanley Cup, paraded around Chicago, we've sung Chelsea Dagger until we are hoarse, and we've partied like it's 1999 and beyond, I can go back to talking about stock.

So you've got your stock and you've got your pot. Get COLD water; it helps leach the flavor out of your veggies and herbs. It also helps the proteins in your bones to coagulate and float to the top. Skimming these clumps and foam frequently keeps your stock clear, which is much more desirable than cloudy stock. Start skimming when the stock boils and then often during simmering time.

Simmer the stock, don't boil it to death and don't stir it like crazy...you don't want a cloudy greasy stock.

Once you have leached all of the flavor you can out of your veggies and herbs, cool the stock quickly and refrigerate. This prevents bacteria from growing. Always reboil your stock when using it for soup. This will kill off any bacteria. If bubbles appear in refrigerated stock, discard it. It means the stock has fermented.

I have had good luck freezing stock in ziploc bags. I just thaw them in the fridge and then heat to boiling.

Soup is one of my favorite things and stock is so easy to make that we have soup often in my house. Typing this today almost makes me wish for fall and winter...NOT.