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Cooking with stocks enhances flavor of dishes

Don’t waste leftover vegetables and bones, throw them in a pot to make a stock. (File)
Daniel Neman Tribune News Service

Some people have skeletons in their closet. I have bones in my freezer.

Stock is perhaps the biggest trade secret of professional chefs. The more they cook with stocks, the more flavor their food has.

A stock is very much like a broth. Meat and vegetables are simmered in water, then all of the solids are removed. What is left is a liquid that has absorbed the flavor of everything that cooked in it.

Technically, if bones are involved in the simmering, it is called a stock; if only meat or vegetables are used, it is a broth. Bones contain natural gelatin, so a stock will have more body and a richer feeling in your mouth; also, it will turn into a gel when it cools.

Stocks do require some time but little effort. Best of all, they are essentially free.

The secret to making great stocks is to refrain from throwing stuff away. If you buy a whole chicken, take the parts you don’t use – the back, the neck, the tips of the wings and the gizzard and heart (but not the liver; it makes it bitter) – seal them in a plastic bag and throw them in the freezer. Then, when you have accumulated four pounds or so, it is time to make a stock.

You’ll want to add a few other ingredients to the bones and some water, but don’t go overboard. A carrot or two, a rib of celery or two and an onion cut in half and studded with no more than four cloves are essential. A bay leaf is always welcome, perhaps four or six sprigs of parsley will go nicely and, if you’re really feeling daring, maybe four sprigs of thyme. Add a few peppercorns, and that is all you need. The flavor of the chicken should predominate.

What do you do when you have all this stock? Portion it out into plastic containers or plastic bags and put it back in your freezer. Right next to where you keep the bones for your next batch.

Vegetable Stock

From Daniel Neman

1 gallon-size recloseable-top plastic bag filled with vegetable scraps (see note)

Water

Place frozen vegetable scraps in a 5 ½- or 6-quart Dutch oven or soup pot. Fill with water to 1 inch or 1 ½ inches from the top. Bring to a boil, immediately reduce heat and cook at a low simmer for 1 hour, skimming off the impurities that rise to the top. Strain out the vegetables and use the stock immediately. Keep it in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze in small portions for up to 6 months.

Note: Freeze whatever raw vegetable scraps you have left over from cooking, especially onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms and parsley; do not use potatoes, artichokes or vegetables that are particularly bitter.

Yield: About 3 quarts

Chicken Stock

Adapted from “The Frog and the Redneck” by Jimmy Sneed

4 pounds chicken backs, necks, wing tips, etc.

6 quarts water

2 onions, halved

4 cloves, each stuck into one of the onion halves

4 ribs celery, each cut into 6 pieces

4 medium carrots, each cut into 6 pieces

2 ripe tomatoes or 3 canned tomatoes, quartered

1/2 bunch parsley

Combine all ingredients in a large soup pot and heat until it almost starts to boil. Immediately reduce the heat and cook at a very low simmer for 2 to 2 ½ hours. Do not allow the stock to boil. Use a wide, flat strainer or a flat spoon to skim impurities from the surface as they appear. Use immediately, or strain and cool on a rack for 1 hour before refrigerating. If you want a stronger-flavored broth, reduce by half after straining. Chicken stock will keep for 1 week refrigerated or 6 months frozen, preferably in small portions.

Yield: 4 to 5 quarts

Beef Stock

Recipe from “Hows and Whys of French Cooking” by Alma Lach

3 pounds beef bones

1 1/2 pounds lean beef

1/2 pound carrots

1/2 pound turnips

1/2 pound leeks

3 quarts cold water

2 whole yellow onions

2 whole cloves

Put bones and meat into a large kettle. Clean carrots and turnips. Cut carrots into eighths, turnips into quarters. Add to kettle. Clean and wash leeks (remove and discard the green part; slice lengthwise almost all the way through to the other side. Rinse thoroughly under cold running water, fanning out the interior layers under the water to ensure they are all washed). Add leeks to the soup kettle. Cover with the water and bring to a boil. Immediately lower temperature to a low simmer. Clean and peel onions. Cut one in half. Put cut side down on a piece of foil or in an iron skillet (using foil will eliminate cleaning problems). Place foil or skillet over very low heat and burn onion to a depth of about 1/16 inch. Burned onion gives the stock a rich brown color. Stick cloves into the other whole onion. Remove scum that has collected on the soup, then add the onions. Skim the pot regularly as impurities collect on top of the liquid. Simmer 3 hours, then remove meat and bones. Discard bones and reserve meat for another use (it will have very little taste, so use it in dishes with a strong flavor). Cook stock another 3 hours and then strain, cool and use in soups or sauces. Freeze, in pint or quart containers, what is not used immediately.

Yield: 1 ½ quarts