Homemade beef stock

[AnnaRaven]

Do you
Roast the bones first or not?
With or without celery and onion?
With or without herbs?

What's your favorite beef stock to make and can.

 

[Dace]

For a brown stock, yes roast the bones.

Yes to herbs ( parsley stems, peppercorns, garlic and bay)

Yes to celery, onion and carrots.

Bring it up to a simmer and skim off the scum. Keep at a low simmer for 24 + hours.

Do not add salt.

 

[freemotion]

I always brown the bones for beef stock, and never put in flavorings in any stock when I make it. I like to make reductions and use stock for different things, so I make it plain and flavor it according to what I am doing with it.

 

[AnnaRaven]

What if you don't have a big enough pot?

If your biggest pot only holds a gallon of water plus bones, and you have 7 pounds of bones already roasted and ready to go, can you add the additional water along the way? I read that you want 1 quart of water per pound of bones. Can I start with just enough water to cover and then swap it into a bigger pot in the morning with the rest of the water?

ETA: Or is it better to throw the roasted bones back in the fridge until tomorrow morning? (I was hoping to get some overnight simmering from them...)

EDITED: Never mind. Julia says I can add boiling water if the level gets below covering the bones. So I take that to mean I'm fine adding the rest of the water in the morning after I get a bigger pot.

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

I brown our moose and bear bones, and then simmer with italian seasoning for 24 hours or so.
Then into pint jars. When its cooled it goes to the freezer.

 

[AnnaRaven]

Well, I've got everything in my pot and just waiting for it to come to the first "boil" to skim off the scum. Then I can just let it simmer overnight and I can go to bed.

 

[patandchickens]

Personally, I most certainly roast the bones (it makes a HUGE difference, although unroasted bones *from a bone-in roast*, e.g. the ribs taken off a rib roast after you've et the meat, make 'vaguely acceptable' stock if it will not have to stand on its own so to speak).

Sometimes I add an onion, usually don't, not convinced it's a big deal. Don't tend to have celery hanging around so never tried adding that; I don't put carrots in when making stock either.

I NEVER EVER add herbs when making stock, at best it's a waste (the flavor is ruined by hours and hours of cooking) and at worst it ruins the stock because herbs do weird things when simmered for hours and hours... add herbs, salt or other flavorings when you are *using* the stock, not when making it.

If your biggest pot only holds a gallon of water plus bones, and you have 7 pounds of bones already roasted and ready to go, can you add the additional water along the way?

I totally wouldn't. I would freeze the excess bones (or put them in the fridge if you will make another batch as soon as this one is done). IME stock gets a bit weird tasting if you have too much bones and not enough water, I don't know why. I think Julia Child is just talking about topping up the water level after evaporation, not doing what you're proposing. I expect the result will still be edible but the other way would be tastier IME.

Please be real careful with "overnight simmering", a lot of housefires are started that sort of way, also it is easy to have things accidentally come up to a hard rolling boil as water level is depleted and then you end up with cloudy stock. Overnight in a crockpot is pretty safe, but of course you can't make large quantities that way.

JMHO, good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[freemotion]

What if you don't have a big enough pot?

If your biggest pot only holds a gallon of water plus bones, and you have 7 pounds of bones already roasted and ready to go, can you add the additional water along the way? I read that you want 1 quart of water per pound of bones. Can I start with just enough water to cover and then swap it into a bigger pot in the morning with the rest of the water?

ETA: Or is it better to throw the roasted bones back in the fridge until tomorrow morning? (I was hoping to get some overnight simmering from them...)

EDITED: Never mind. Julia says I can add boiling water if the level gets below covering the bones. So I take that to mean I'm fine adding the rest of the water in the morning after I get a bigger pot.

Five gallon stock pot, baby, five gallons!

You'll need it for cheesemaking once you get goats, anyways.

I routinely simmer for 24 and even 48 hours. I have a woodstove going full-time, what's a pot on the gas stove as far as fire hazard? I take the time to get the pot adjusted to a simmer before leaving it unattended, and I have one with one of those glass covers with a tiny vent hole in it. That pot barely loses water overnight.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

not a big enough pot!?!?! *slaps forehead*

baby! quick! get in your car and drive drive drive! somewhere around there is a restaurant supply place - open to the public - you can score fabulous deals on industrial quality cook ware on the cheap. if you are superduper lucky there is a USED restaurant supply place....

and keep your eyes peeled in big box stores, grocery stores, and big lots. Bourbon Red scored several 16 quart stock pots for $4.99 at one of our grocery stores. he gave me one and its a dream.

and dont rule out just using several smaller stock pots. not as efficient but it works. so does your crock pot.

and i'm with free - i dont season mostly b/c i give the bones and the leavin's to the dogs and i dont want them to have the spices/onions and such.

i have an extremely reliable stove so i simmer overnight also. but dont burn your house down. and if you have overinterested cats i put a wire/mesh cookie cooling rack over the open stock pot so there arent little paws pawing around in it all nite (Nicholas!).

hope your stock turned out!

 

[Wifezilla]

I also add a little raw apple cider vinegar to help draw the minerals out of the bones.

Now go get yourself a descent stock pot. You will need it for cheese, mead, beer, soup stock, canning.....