46
votes
Accepted
What happens when you reduce stock all the way?
If you reduce filtered broth all the way, you get portable soup. It dries down into a solid that looks a bit like leather. Because of the gelatin from the bones, portable soup is bendy and flexible. ...
- 3,138
41
votes
Accepted
Why is my vegetable stock bitter, but the chicken stock not?
I notice that your recipe doesn't include any salt. That's important, because salt decreases the sensation of bitterness. Chicken contains a certain amount of salt, and I suspect that's making the ...
- 26.9k
22
votes
Accepted
Preserving beef stock concentrate
If you are starting with your own beef stock, the best way to preserve it long term is to freeze it. If you are lacking on freezer space, reduce it by half...or even three quarters, then freeze. You ...
- 73.8k
21
votes
How can I make my Tonkotsu broth less fatty?
It sounds like what you're describing as "fattiness" is really gelatinousness. Your long-simmered bones will release a lot of gelatin, which gives broth a thick, sticky, unctuous texture. It'...
- 26.9k
19
votes
How close are store bought broths and stocks to the real thing?
There's a great deal of variation in the quality of the pre-made stocks you get from different sources, so there's no clear-cut answer. Here's the types you might find:
Stock cubes: these are ...
- 75.4k
18
votes
Accepted
Using vegetable peelings to make stock
For some veg it makes sense:
the peelings of well-scrubbed carrots and parsnips,
the bits you remove if your celery is stringy, and celery leaves (I grow my own so always have leaves)
non-muddy ...
- 43.7k
14
votes
Accepted
A stock question for British catering professionals
I buy tubs of Knorr stock powder from restaurant supply stores here in the uk, it's a different product from their cubes, and has a very different flavor, there's also a paste. It may be worth having ...
- 75.4k
13
votes
What happens when you reduce stock all the way?
A stock reduced to a syrup is known as a glace. Glace is French for "glaze". The glace is used to flavor sauces. If you stop the cooking before it becomes a syrup, you have what is known ...
- 73.8k
13
votes
Accepted
How close is the liquid in canned vegetables to vegetable stock?
"How close" is really a matter of taste.
Canning liquid generally consists of water, salt, and preservatives, plus particles from the cooked vegetables in the can. For example, the can of ...
- 61.2k
10
votes
Preserving beef stock concentrate
You can preserve liquid stock at room temperature using pressure canning, where you put your jars in a large pressure cooker to raise the temperature of the food you are preserving high enough that it ...
- 75.4k
9
votes
Why skim "scum" from the surface of a simmering stock?
Removing the scum makes it easier to control the temperature of the stock so you can maintain a constant simmer. If you don't skim it off, the scum aggregates in a foamy layer on the surface, which ...
- 1,903
9
votes
Accepted
How close are store bought broths and stocks to the real thing?
All excellent information, but can I answer bluntly: none of them come even CLOSE to the real thing. Once you use fresh stock, you will never, ever go back. Really. Making stock is easy, cheap, and as ...
- 1,387
9
votes
Accepted
Using half-eaten bones to make stock -- sanitary?
It's not sanitary, in the sense of following the health rules. Especially since it's unlikely that you're following the two-hour guidelines: the gnawed bones have been in the danger zone enough to ...
- 4,436
9
votes
Why is my vegetable stock bitter, but the chicken stock not?
I make veg stock overnight in a slow cooker on high with similar ingredients to you: onion, garlic, carrot, bay, peppercorns. But: celery instead of celeriac (I grow celery and often have some old ...
- 43.7k
9
votes
Accepted
Are “stockpots” concentrated stock packs in the refrigerated section of the supermarket?
You sometimes can buy refrigerated stock, but the concentrated "Knorr Stock Pots" that I tried when they were on offer are shelf stable and sold with the stock cubes and powders. But ...
- 43.7k
8
votes
A stock question for British catering professionals
Both Knorr & Maggi have been going since forever. I really would expect it to be one or the other [Bisto & Oxo too, but for some reason I always think of them as being more of a home product]. ...
- 29.7k
7
votes
Accepted
Do Ice Wands have an advantage over a homemade solution?
Putting it simply, the nalgene ones are probably only more expensive than regular water bottles because they are more specialized and there is a smaller market for them. That makes it easier for the ...
- 2,986
7
votes
Stock questions. What to taste for when making stock?
Since you are going to be using it for cooking, you're absolutely right to not add salt. Especially if the cooking involves reduction, you want to be able to control the salt level at that point. ...
- 58.5k
7
votes
Squeezing as much liquid as possible out of a stock: a practical approach?
Not difficult at all if you truly want to get every possible last drop. Choose a large clean tea towel for this purpose only. After you've drained most of the liquids out, line your colander with the ...
- 3,963
6
votes
Accepted
Should I be worried if my broth or stock has no foam to skim?
Brief answer: no, you shouldn't be worried.
Slightly longer answer: you only should be worried if your stock/broth displays characteristics of unskimmed stock (i.e., cloudiness, particles, or odd ...
- 32.1k
6
votes
Accepted
Is there such a thing as pork stock?
There certainly is such a thing as pork stock, it's made the same way as beef and chicken stock - by cooking down bones to extract the flavors. With beef you use beef bones, with pork you use pork ...
- 75.4k
6
votes
Accepted
Can I make bone broth with bones without marrow?
What you're proposing is similar to 'remouillage' ('rewetting'; sometimes called 'second stock'). It's a stock made from bones that have already been used to make stock.
It may not be quite as ...
- 80k
6
votes
Accepted
How much flavor do you lose when you clarify a stock with an egg raft?
I'm open to correction, but in my opinion,the main reason for clarifying a stock, assuming gross impurities have been removed, is aesthetic. Not forgetting that the the appearance of food does change ...
- 1,865
6
votes
What is the difference between jus and stock?
Jus generally refers to a sauce or accompaniment, served alongside or on top of some other food.
Stock is a (generally gelatin-rich) broth used during the cooking process, whether as a braising/...
- 14.9k
6
votes
I'm cooking a Romanian meatball soup for 60 people. How much of this soup do I need to feed 60 people?
After looking at many very similar recipes (in English) for Romanian sour meatball soup, or Ciorba de Perisoare, I'm inclined to think that this recipe does indeed make 5 liters.
Most all of the ...
- 18.3k
6
votes
Accepted
how do I remove partially-disintegrated sediment/tiny-bones from stock?
Straining might work, but you may need to use a process known as "decanting":
Let the stock sit until any sediment falls to the bottom.
Remove the good liquid, avoiding the sediment at the bottom.
...
- 80k
6
votes
Accepted
Perpetual stew-like stock using the fridge: is it a good idea?
I like this idea, a lot actually, it would be an interesting experiment, but you would have to keep it on the gas.
Ignoring the safety concern of accumulating pesticides, which you mention, this ...
- 869
6
votes
Accepted
Why remove the vegetables from vegetable stock?
The point of stock is to extract the maximum flavor from whatever you are using, be it bones or vegetables. Once extracted there's not a whole left, which is why you don't boil stock bones over and ...
- 75.4k
6
votes
Do stocks made with less water lack the same flavor as a stock made with lots of water?
The less water you use the more concentrated the flavor of the stock. Adding lots of water doesn't extract more flavor from the ingredients, it just dilutes it.
If you add too much water to the pot ...
- 75.4k
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