Easy Homemade Chicken Stock for the Busy Military Spouse

Let’s talk homemade chicken stock + why I love it so much.

• It’s delicious as a soup/recipe base or on its own for sippin’
• It’s packed full of nutrients
• It’s so fun to make
• You don’t need to follow any specific recipe

I love setting aside a day that I know I’m going to be up early + home all day and coin it “stock day.” I gather all the chicken bones and vegetable parts that have been building up in my freezer awaiting this special occasion + get them roasting by 8am.  But, you guys, here’s the thing: you don’t have to do that.  You can make chicken stock with almost any amount of time.  Only have a few hours? No problem.  Want to spend all day? Let’s party. The more time + ingredients that you put into it, of course, the more flavor you’re going to get out of it. And that is all personal preference.

So here’s your basic needs for a good chicken stock: bones from at least one whole chicken (save that rotisserie carcass in the freezer), a yellow onion or two with the skin on, carrots, garlic, celery (the more leaves the better), whole peppercorns, and some herbs. I love using rosemary, thyme, and bay leaves at least, but will search my fridge for any extra veggies + herbs that aren’t already planned for a recipe. Other things I’ve been known to add are parsley, scallions, shallots, red onion, parsnips, ginger, you get the idea.  Because making stock is so versatile, I’m going to lay out for you how I do my basic stock which is just one of many ways to do it. Keep in mind that if you want to use more or less of any of these ingredients – go for it! Taste + learn as you go.

Ingredients:

Bones (and any leftover meat, skin, etc) of 2 chickens

2 whole yellow onions with skin on, cut in half

4 carrots, unpeeled

3 stalks celery, with leaves

1 head of garlic unpeeled and cut horizontally

2 whole bay leaves

10 sprigs of thyme

10 sprigs rosemary

10 whole peppercorns (to start)

Salt to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400F. Place all bones, meat, and veggies (leave out the herbs and S&P) on a baking tray and lightly drizzle with oil. Roast in the oven until defrosted (if previously frozen) or until lightly roasted about 10 minutes. We don’t want to cook anything, just get it a little extra flavor. 

Place all of the ingredients into your stockpot (and anything stuck to the roasting pan) and cover generously with water.  Bring to a boil, skim, then simmer for at least 4 hours.  I let mine go for about 8-10 hours, adding water to keep the contents covered as needed.  This allows for extraction of the most nutrients + collagen out of the bones and vegetables while not allowing it to get too condensed.

Once simmered to your liking, strain the contents out through a cheese cloth and strainer into a new pot.  Rapidly cool the stock in your sink by allowing it to sit surrounded by water + ice.  Once cooled, refrigerate covered overnight. 

The next morning you should have a pot full of gelatinous chicken stock.  Skim the fat off the top and divide into containers for freezing.  

If you loved this but missed my earlier post on meal ideas for when your military spouse is away, be sure to check it out HERE!