Janet Turner from Frome Somerset said:
I was a kid during the war and learnt then never to waste food. Any leftovers I usually freeze to be used another... More
Basic Chicken or Turkey Stock
Making stock from the leftover bones from a roast will ensure you always have a good base for soups, risottos and gravies. Making stocks at home really helps us get the most from our meat joint and are a great alternative to stock cubes and powders or the fresh stocks you find in the chiller cabinets of supermarkets. Even if you don’t have time to make stock, freeze the bones from the roast bird and make the stock when you have more time.
Ingredients
Makes approx 1.2 litres
- Chicken or turkey carcass
- 1 onion, cut into 4 (including skin)
- A couple of carrots (skin scrubbed)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 celery stick, chopped n half
- 1 teaspoon of black peppercorns
Black peppercorns
Best used as a condiment.
They can be lightly crushed and used to spice up a creamy sauce or to coat fillet steak or chicken breasts.- Although it might seem odd, grinding black pepper over a bowl of strawberries enhances the flavour of the fruit.
- Pepper that is pre-ground is not fresh tasting and often has other ingredients mixed in.
- Choose the type of mill that suits you, and if you want coarser pepper you can loosen the screw on the top of the mill or crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar
- Few sprigs of thyme
- Parsley and a small bayleaf
Instructions
- Put the carcass into a large saucepan and cover with water. Add onion, chopped carrots, garlic clove and celery. Sprinkle in black peppercorns, thyme, parsley and bayleaf.
- Bring up to the boil and remove the scum from the surface with a large spoon, turn down the heat and simmer for 1½ – 2 hours.
- Cool a little, strain and leave to cool. The vegetables can be kept to use in a soup. The fat can be removed from the surface by drawing absorbent kitchen paper over it.
