How to Make Soup Stock: 3 Easy Broth Recipes

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By HS Schulte
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Soup Stock

Soup stocks are wonderfully healthy and a comfort food on a cold day. According to a recent article on WebMD, chicken soup can help cure the common cold! Homemade soups are always healthier and taste better than something out of a can, so follow these simple tips to make sure you have soup stock on hand.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Vegetable Stock
Place the chopped vegetables, herbs, and spices into a stockpot. Add enough cold water to cover the vegetables. Simmer for approximately 3 hours. Many people make vegetable stock from scraps such as peels and stems. If you use vegetable scraps to make your stock, you will need to strain them from the stock and discard them when finished. A note about boiling vegetables: when you boil vegetables, a lot of their flavor and nutrients leach out into the water. The next time you boil vegetables, consider saving the water and using it to make vegetable stock.
Step 2

Chicken or Turkey Stock
Place the chicken bones, spare meat, vegetable scraps, herbs and spices into a stockpot. Add enough cold water to cover the vegetables and bones. Simmer for approximately 4 hours. Foam will form on the surface of the chicken stock as it simmers. Use a spoon, or ladle, to skim it off. Strain the bones and vegetable scraps from the stock and discard them.
Step 3

Beef Stock
Begin by baking the beef soup bones in the oven at 450 degrees for half an hour. Put the beef bones, spare meat, vegetable scraps, herbs and spices into a stockpot. Add enough cold water to cover the vegetables and bones. Simmer for approximately 5 hours. Foam will form on the surface of the beef stock as it simmers. Use a spoon, or ladle, to skim it off. Strain the bones and vegetable scraps from the stock and discard them. Lining the strainer with cheesecloth will remove the excess fat from the stock.
Step 4

Using Your Stock
You can use the stock immediately as a base for soup, or you can freeze it and begin making your soup on another day. If you freeze the soup stock, leave a bit of space in the top of the container for expansion. It is a good idea to freeze the stock into the portion size that works best for you. A single cup of stock can be warmed on a cold day for an instant meal. Tossing in leftover meat and vegetables from the refrigerator creates a wonderful meal. Adding cream, pureed vegetables, starch, or flour can thicken soup stock.

Comments

GreenGardenChic said

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on 7/14/2008 Nothing like homemade. Thanks.

MIghtyDreamer said

on 7/13/2008 This is a great article, again to keep around for a reference. You've given us 4 different variations on stock to make and then ways to preserve and use. Wonderful. Thank you.