For me part of good cooking is having good ingredients on hand to work with.
A few years ago I purchased one of those large roasters made by GE. It will easily hold 4 large chickens.
When we process more birds this weekend I plan on using it next week to cook several of the birds. I will then can the broth. The meat will be pulled form the bone and prepackage for the freezer for quick and easy meals on days when time runs short. It also saves tons of freezer space to not have so many full sized birds sitting in big lumps of bags.
This past week I wrote about how we processed the first three of our packing peanut roosters. One night I slow roasted one and last night I used my pressure cooker and processed one until the meat just fell off the bones. I picked all of the meat from the bones and added it back to the cooker with some of the broth. I then cooked potatoes, onions garlic, carrots, celery and served it in big steaming bowls for supper.
As you know the home grown chickens are so much more flavorful than a commercial chicken. I just can't express to you how much better.
With that said -
The broth I made from our packing peanut roosters is the best chicken stock I have had in several years. The chickens had a nice roll of fat in them and I left some of the fat on when we processed them because the fat is what makes the richness in chicken dishes and add the flavor to stock.
From one chicken, not including the broth used to make stew, I made a gallon of some the best chicken stock that is beyond anything you can buy.
I used my very large cooker, 1 chicken and added enough water to completely cover it by at least an inch or two. I then add chopped onion, garlic, celery, cracked black pepper and just a pinch of salt. I let it simmer for a good hour then let it cool. I poured it into half gallon size jars for processing. These jars can go directly into the freezer as well just remember to leave a bit of head space because the liquid expands when frozen.
I haven't strained this jar. I put it straight into the fridge because I wanted to see how it would separate. When I pressure can this broth I will trade out the white lid for a metal lid and ring.
See how much fat came to the top? I'll spoon that off then strain the stock. It is incredible how much richer this broth is compared to a commercial stock. I always keep stock in the freezer or canned. It is so easy in the winter to grab a big jar and cook any type of vegetable soup or add it to stews. I use it to make southern dressing at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is perfect for using to boil rice or noodles which is better than anything campbell's has on a shelf. Using a commercial chicken I can make a good stock. Using a chicken I raised myself I make a hands down 500% improved stock. You can, too!
Run, don't walk and get you some meat birds! You need them for really good home cooking this winter!
Do you keep stock on hand? Do you have a basic stock recipe?
A few years ago I purchased one of those large roasters made by GE. It will easily hold 4 large chickens.
When we process more birds this weekend I plan on using it next week to cook several of the birds. I will then can the broth. The meat will be pulled form the bone and prepackage for the freezer for quick and easy meals on days when time runs short. It also saves tons of freezer space to not have so many full sized birds sitting in big lumps of bags.
This past week I wrote about how we processed the first three of our packing peanut roosters. One night I slow roasted one and last night I used my pressure cooker and processed one until the meat just fell off the bones. I picked all of the meat from the bones and added it back to the cooker with some of the broth. I then cooked potatoes, onions garlic, carrots, celery and served it in big steaming bowls for supper.
As you know the home grown chickens are so much more flavorful than a commercial chicken. I just can't express to you how much better.
With that said -
The broth I made from our packing peanut roosters is the best chicken stock I have had in several years. The chickens had a nice roll of fat in them and I left some of the fat on when we processed them because the fat is what makes the richness in chicken dishes and add the flavor to stock.
From one chicken, not including the broth used to make stew, I made a gallon of some the best chicken stock that is beyond anything you can buy.
I used my very large cooker, 1 chicken and added enough water to completely cover it by at least an inch or two. I then add chopped onion, garlic, celery, cracked black pepper and just a pinch of salt. I let it simmer for a good hour then let it cool. I poured it into half gallon size jars for processing. These jars can go directly into the freezer as well just remember to leave a bit of head space because the liquid expands when frozen.
I haven't strained this jar. I put it straight into the fridge because I wanted to see how it would separate. When I pressure can this broth I will trade out the white lid for a metal lid and ring.
See how much fat came to the top? I'll spoon that off then strain the stock. It is incredible how much richer this broth is compared to a commercial stock. I always keep stock in the freezer or canned. It is so easy in the winter to grab a big jar and cook any type of vegetable soup or add it to stews. I use it to make southern dressing at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is perfect for using to boil rice or noodles which is better than anything campbell's has on a shelf. Using a commercial chicken I can make a good stock. Using a chicken I raised myself I make a hands down 500% improved stock. You can, too!
Run, don't walk and get you some meat birds! You need them for really good home cooking this winter!
Do you keep stock on hand? Do you have a basic stock recipe?
