How to make the foundation of all things delicious: Stock

Before you make stock – it would probably be a good idea to know what it is…

A bit of history

Stock, the foundation of all modern cooking is rooted in necessity. In the Middle Ages, the primary cooking method involved cooking over an open fire with a large cauldron. Often the contents of these cauldrons were a mix of leftover meals and scraps, fresh foods and tidbits foraged throughout the day. The cauldron to the common person in the middle ages was a stove and refrigerator in one. Nothing went to waste as food was not a convenience as it is now. Everything one couldn’t eat fresh was thrown into the pot.

Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold,
Pease porridge in the pot, nine days old;
Some like it hot, some like it cold,
Some like it in the pot, nine days old

The earliest recorded version of Pease Porridge Hot is a riddle found in John Newbery’s Mother
Goose’s Melody (c. 1760).

As time passed recipes were developed and one can imagine the natural progression from having the need to roast and boil animal bones for sustenance to the culinary foundations we are accustomed today.

Stocks are most associated with French cuisine, as they were refined in the early kitchens in modern France. Stocks were cooked down, removing water from the stock and leaving behind collagen rich gelatins which were used for garnishes and for preservation of other foods. These gelatins are called aspics. Some French cookbooks still have recipes calling for aspics.

And now, a bit of science

Animal bones contain proteins called collagen, reticulin and elastin. These proteins are what help hold our bodies together- keeps all the rigid and soft parts from well, sloshing all around. Reticulin and elastin are stretchy but tend to stretch and break when cooked.

Collagen does not break – it acts as a tenderizer when heated and helps make stocks richer and have a silky mouth-feel when hot and elastic when cooled. Collagen becomes gelatin. Just like Jell-o with the exception that Jell-O is flavored and collagen is flavorless. The flavor of stock comes from the bones and the ingredients added to the stockpot. Collagen has to be unlocked by heating to 180*F and HOLDING it at that low simmer for a long time. You can also use an acid, like tomato paste, to help unlock these proteins from bones. If heated too quickly and intensely collagen can be “locked” inside bones – this is one of the reasons you NEVER boil a stock. High temperature roasting of the bones before adding them to the pot adds flavor, then the long simmer time coaxes out the collagen and melds flavors.

Cooking Stock

In order to make great soups, sauces, and stews, you have to learn how to make the base liquid – a stock. The French refer to stocks as the “fond” or the “base” of good cooking. That’s why stocks are so important – they are the FOUNDATION of everything else you might make in the kitchen.

So how do you actually make one? Simple. Gently simmer ingredients in water. What should you simmer? Meat, poultry, fish, game, or seafood, throw in a mirepoix (a blend of carrots, onions, and celery), add various herbs and spices wrapped up in a cheesecloth bag called a sachet d’epices or bouquet garni… then let it cook. You can even make a vegetable stock with an assortment of produce, or intensely flavored with a single ingredient, such as mushrooms, tomatoes, or leeks.

There are different French terms used for stocks. The terms can be confusing but they are essentially pretty similar.

• Broth is made from simmered meats,
• Stock is made from simmered bones.
• Bouillon is ANY liquid produced by simmering ingredients in water
• Fumet is a seafood stock, usually reduced to intensify the flavors and frequently has white wine added
• Remouillage is a weaker stock made from bones which have ALREADY been used to make stock and are getting used to make a second batch (think of it as the “leftover” variety)
• Demi-glace is a super-thick stock made by reducing a brown stock and adding espagnole sauce

Stocks are divided into two categories: white and brown. White stock is uncolored and subtle flavored, while a brown stock uses roasted components to create a rich color and robust flavor. Depending on the desired outcome, any stock can be white or brown. A stock can also be as simple as the Japanese preparation of Dashi, a light stock made with three things: dried seaweed (Kombu), dried bonito fish flakes (Katsuobushi), and mushrooms (shiitakes).

Recipes

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Chicken Stock (White)

Keyword Culinary 1

Ingredients

• 2 – 3 quarts cold water
• 3 pounds chicken carcasses including necks, feet, and backs

For mirepoix

• 1 large white onion quartered
• 1 carrot peeled and cut in ½
• 1 rib celery cut in ½
• 2 leek white part only, cut in 1/2 lengthwise

For Aromatics

• 10 sprigs fresh thyme
• 10 sprigs fresh parsley with stems
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 to 10 peppercorns
• Cheesecloth and string

Instructions

• Trim chicken of all fat, blanch in boiling water, drain.
• Place chicken and mirepoix in stockpot.
• Cook on high heat until you begin to see bubbles break through the surface of the liquid. IMMEDIATELY turn heat down to medium low so that stock maintains low, gentle simmer. DO NOT ALLOW TO BOIL.
• Skim the scum from the stock with a spoon or fine mesh strainer every 10 to 15 minutes for the first hour of cooking and twice each hour for the next 2 hours. Add hot water as needed to keep bones and vegetables submerged. Continue to simmer uncovered for an additional 4-5 hours.
• Wrap aromatics in cheesecloth, tie with butcher's twine, and add to stock.
• Strain stock through a fine mesh strainer into another large stockpot or heatproof container, discarding the solids. Cool immediately in ice bath to below 70 degrees within 2 hours.
• Place in refrigerator overnight.
• Remove solidified fat from surface.
• Use as a base in soups and sauces.