Homemade Broth

[freemotion]

Yes, just barely simmering. You can add water, too, if it boils away. Or just call it a reduction! Just keep the bones covered.

Remember to use filtered water, especially if you are on a public water supply. Reductions concentrate flavor, but also potential toxins.

 

[Dace]

Yeah I was on as low as I could go! I may need to add a little more water as soon as I drain it off...I'll give it a little taste first to see.

Think I will make a chicken pot pie for dinner
I also picked up some beef bones. I thought they were quite expensive $1.49 LB so I only got enough to do a half batch...gonna call a local butcher to check his prices. What would you all say is a fair price?

 

[Farmfresh]

I just read the post about the chicken feet. I have a friend who immigrated to America from Liberia.

One day, after she found out I raise my own chickens, she cautiously asked me what I did with my chicken feet. I told her I pitched them. She then asked if she could have them. It seems she makes a soup that uses ONLY chicken feet.

So now I save them all for her. If you have interest I could ask her for the recipe.

 

[Dace]

I just strained my stock.....the flavor is ok, a little too much parsley but that is ok.

The book says to refrigerate then remove the fat. 2 questions...1) can I save the fat to use in cooking? 2) could I just can it as is or must I remove the fat first?

 

[big brown horse]

Dace, I did use my crock pot for the first batch. Set on Low. It worked great!

 

[patandchickens]

Remove the fat before canning so you don't have to worry about rancidity issues.

If you were going to store it in teh fridge for a while though, I leave the fat on it because it creates a nicely airtight seal and makes it keep longer in the fridge before getting funky.

You can save the fat for cooking if you want. It's not as good as the "prime" chicken fat from when you're first cleaning the carcass, though, like the big globs right under the tail. Whether it's worth saving fat off stock depends on how much chicken fat you go through i.e. how hard up for it you are. I've never been that desperate but I'm sure tastes and practices vary

Have fun,

Pat

 

[Dace]

Thanks Pat

 

[freemotion]

I save the fat off the stock and freeze it. Some batches are better than others, so if I have one that isn't so good, the chickens get it. I freeze some in 1/2 cup portions, that works the best for using it later. I added some once to a batch of soap, and it worked out just fine.

This is another reason why I don't flavor the broth until I am using it.

I will add lots of herbs and flavorings to a batch that I will freeze in the 1/2 cup portions, and use that to toss with veggies for roasting all winter....YUM! I use the Italian herbs....basil, oregano, garlic and onion powders, salt and pepper. It comes out so much better than olive oil....and is essentially free, since it would've been tossed out, anyways.

I recently made zucchini/corn fritters and fried them in some chicken fat from the freezer.....ooo-la-la! I just love the flavor it imparts. It will pop and splatter, so a splatter guard is a must. It stops eventually.

If I am making a pot pie, chicken fat will be the shortening for whatever I am topping the pie with, whether biscuits or pie crust. A little tricky to work with sometimes, but the flavor is worth it.

I always have plenty on hand because of my catfood-making.

 

[Dace]

My fat layer was pretty thin, I assume because the chicken had already been cooked.

Also, the meat that I picked off of the bones is awful! It is tough so that tells me that 1) don't use a frozen carcass and 2) it 'simmered' at too high of a temp.

I am going to do beef today, so maybe I will use my large crock pot as BBH had suggested.

 

[freemotion]

Yup, probably the fat cooked out already. If you can, pour the fat from the roasting pan into the bag with the bones if you are going to save it in the freezer. A lot of the flavor is stuck to the roasting pan! Use some filtered water and put the pan on a low burner and stir, scraping off all the brown bits and fat. Do the same with your beef bones, after roasting them.