Admittedly not as useful as veal or chicken stock, pork stock nonetheless makes a good basis for certain soups and for sauces to accompany pork. Use only uncured pork bones to make it. The smoky flavor of ham bones or those from other cured cuts would overpower the stock; they are best added to lentils or beans.
As with any bones, they can be saved in the freezer until you have enough, or ask you butcher to set them aside for you. Skin, feet, and ears are good additions to the stock because they increase the gelatin content. A small pig’s foot (have your butcher cut it into pieces) or a piece of skin about 6 inches square, with the fat removed, will be enough for this stock. Add either one with the bones.
4 1/2lbs. Meaty Pork Bones, cut into 2-to-3-inch pieces
1 Small Pig’s Foot, cut into pieces, optional
2 Medium Carrots, sliced
2 Medium Carrots, sliced
2 Celery Stalks, sliced
1 Large Onion, unpeeled, cut into wedges
Green Tops of 3 Leeks, sliced
6 Flat-Leaf Parsley Stems
1 Large Thyme Sprig
1 Bay Leaf
A Large Strip of Lemon Zest
3 Garlic Cloves
1/4 tsp. Black Peppercorns
Kosher Salt, optional
Instructions
Rinse the bones and foot, if using, under cold running water, then place in a large stockpot. Add the carrots, celery, onion, leeks, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, lemon zest, and garlic. Pour in enough cold water to cover the bones, about 12 cups, and bring slowly to a boil. As soon as the stock begins to boil, reduce the heat so that it simmers. Using a soup ladle, skin off any scum that has risen to the surface (rotate it’s bowl on the surface of the stock to make ripples: these will carry the scum to the edges of the pot, and you can then use the ladle to lift it off.) Add the peppercorns and simmer, uncovered, for 5 hours, skimming from time to time.
Strain the stock through a sieve into a large bowl. Discard the debris left in the sieve, and cool the stock quickly by placing the bowl in a larger bowl or sink filled with ice water; stir occasionally as it cools. When you taste the stock, you will notice that something is missing–the salt. It was deliberately left out so that you can reduce the stock, if desired, without any fear that it will become too salty. If you will not be reducing the stock, add about 1 tsp. salt.
Refrigerate the stock for 6 hours, or overnight, to allow the fat to rise to the top and the debris to sink to the bottom. Remove the fat before using (and discard the debris at the bottom of the bowl). Divide into 1-cup quantities and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 6 months.
Notes
Concentrated Pork Stock (Makes 1 1/2 cups)
If your freezer pace is tight, reduce your stock by following the method for Concentrated Brown Stock (found here). º6 cups Unsalted Pork Stock ºKosher Salt The reduced stock will become syrupy and turn a deep golden color.
The information and recipe, contained within, is excerpted from Bones by Jennifer McLagan and can be purchased here.
Often I don’t have room for one more container of stock in my freezer, so I make easy-to-store frozen concentrated stock cubes. As the stock boils, the water evaporates, concentrating the stock’s flavor and making what is called a demi-glace. (This technique of boiling to reduce the liquid is also a way to boost the flavor of an insipid stock–but only if there is no salt in it.) The wider the saucepan, the faster the liquid will evaporate, but it will still take at least 15 to 20 minutes. The saucepan must be deep enough to prevent the stock from boiling over. Watch the stock carefully toward the end of the cooking time, as it can boil up quite dramatically.
Before starting, pour 1 1/2 cups water into the saucepan you plan to use. This will show you the quantity of the concentrated stock you’re aiming for. Discard the water.
Pour the stock into the pan and bring to a boil. Continue to boil until it is reduced by about three-quarters, about 15 minutes. Pour the stock into a glass measuring cup to see if it has reduced to 1 1/2 cups. If not, return it to the saucepan and continue to boil to reduce it further. The stock will become syrupy and turn darker.
Pour the reduction back into the measuring cup and add a good pinch of salt. Taste for seasoning and allow to cool slightly. Then pour the stock into ice cube trays and place in the refrigerator. (I usually end up with twenty-four cubes, each about 1 tablespoon.) When cold, the cubes will set like jelly and can be popped out of the trays and stored in bags in the freezer.
These stock cubes are four times as strong as the original stock. You can use them to boost the flavor of soups and sauces. Or, to reconstitute them to use un place of stock, add 3 tablespoons water along with each cube.
Notes
If you reduce the stock too much, just add a little water.
The information and recipe, contained within, is excerpted from Bones by Jennifer McLagan and can be purchased here.
Stock is very simple to make, as most of the cooking time is unattended. A good stock is very useful to the cook; it is the foundation of soups and sauces and it adds depth of flavor to braised meats and other dishes. When making beef stock, add some veal bones if you can, because they contain more collagen and will result in a richer, more gelatinous stock. A spilt calf’s foot is ideal, but not easy to find.
Brown stock is made by roasting the bones before cooking them in water. The result is a darker, stronger flavored stock that is a great addition to slow-cooked beef dishes and sauces for the roast beef, as well as with game when game stock isn’t available.
Stock can be made almost any quantity, I find this amount fits easily into my stockpot, the recipe can be doubled. The stock can be refrigerated or frozen; if room is tight in the freezer, the stock can be concentrated before freezing (see here).
Preheat the oven to 425º F. Scatter the carrots, onion, celery, and leek over the bottom of a large roasting pan. Rinse the bones well under cold running water, pat bones dry, and place them on top of the vegetables.
Roasting, turning the bones once or twice, for 1 hour, or until the bones are well browned.
Using tongs, transfer the bones and vegetables to a large stockpot. Discard any fat from the roasting pan. Add 2 cups water to the pan and bring to a boil over medium heat, deglazing the pan by scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Add this liquid to the stockpot, along with the tomato, garlic, mushroom trimmings, if using, bay leaf, thyme, and parsley. Pour in 10 cups cold water, or enough to cover the bones, and bring slowly to a boil. As soon as the stock begins to boil, reduce the heat so that it simmers. Using a soup ladle, skim skim off any scum that has risen to the surface (rotate its bowl on the surface of the stock to make ripples: these will carry the scum to the edges of the pot, and you can then use the ladle to lift it off). Add the peppercorns and simmer, uncovered, for 5 hours, skimming from time to time.
Strain the stock through a sieve into a large bowl. Discard the debris left in the sieve, and cool the stock quickly by placing the bowl in larger bowl or sink filled with ice water; stir occasionally as it cools. When you taste the stock, you will notice that something is missing–the salt. Once you add it, the flavor will sparkle. But it was deliberately left out so that you can reduce the stock if desired, without any fear that it will become too salty. If you are not reducing the stock, add about 1 tsp. salt.
Refrigerate the stock for 6 hours, or overnight, to allow the fat to rise to the top of the stock and the debris to sink to the bottom. Remove the fat before using (and discard the debris at the bottom of the bowl).
Divide into 1-cup quantities and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze for up to 6 months.
Notes
White Veal Stock º White veal stock can be used in any veal dish as well as in place of poultry or pork stock.
º Use only veal bones rather than a mixture of beef and veal bones. Do not roast the bones or vegetables. Place the bones and vegetables in the stockpot, along with the tomato, garlic, optional mushroom trimmings, bay leaf, thyme, and parsley, and add 12 cups cold water. Proceed as for brown stock, adding the peppercorns after skimming.
The information and recipe, contained within, is excerpted from Bones by Jennifer McLagan and can be purchased here.
Allow Plenty of time for the nutrients from both the bones and vegetables to incorporate into the broth, all broths should be cooked for a long time.
Generally, aim to cook your broth for a minimum of 12 hours and up to 24 hours. The exact cooking time depends on the amount and density of the bones: for example, for a couple of fish carcasses, 12 hours is fine; for a few pounds of buffalo bones, 24 hours is better. When the length of cooking time is given as a range, it’s preferable, for maximum nutrition and flavor, to cook the broth for the longer amount of time; that said, the shorter cooking time will still yield a broth rich in both nutrition and flavor.
I prefer to make bone broth in a slow cooker, but you can cook the broth on the stovetop in a large stockpot over very low heat (barely simmering.)
A properly cooked bone broth, one that’s filled with healthy collagen and gelatin extracted from the bones over a long cooking time, will become gelatinous when chilled. Once the broth is heated, it will return to a liquid consistency.
Larger, sturdier bones can be reused up to three times for broth-making, although the resulting broth will be less nutrient-dense and flavorful each time. When you notice the bones significantly soften or even disintegrate, they’re spent and should not be used again.
Once the broth is chilled, a layer of fat may form across the top. The amount of fat depends on the type of the bones used (beef and lamb bones, for example, have more fat than chicken or fish.) You can incorporate this fat layer back into the broth by heating and stirring, or you can simply skim this layer off the top before reheating if you don’t want a high-fat broth. It’s generally not recommended to use this fat for cooking since it has high moisture content and won’t be easy to work with
To reheat broth, gently warm it on the stovetop over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes. Avoid bringing broth to a rolling boil when cooking with it or reheating it to enjoy as a hot beverages, as boiling can break down the proteins in the bones too quickly and essentially boil away much of that rich, fatty goodness–and some cooks say it can impact the flavor, too.
Have fun with the add-ins and flavor combinations! Use the spices and veggies you like in your broths, and experiment with new ones, too. Consider combinations that optimize health (turmeric and black pepper, for example) as well as add-ins that taste delicious. And, of course, if you have food sensitivities or follow a specific eating protocol, such as low-FODMAP, omit any vegetables or hers as needed to suit your dietary needs. Make it your own!
Season the broth to taste (usually with just a pinch of salt) before enjoying it as a hot beverage.
To understand the differences between stock and broth, go here.
Information and recipe excerpted from It Takes Guts by Ashleigh Vanhoute and can be purchased here.
This is as about as easy as it gets with homemade broth! Simply put bones, vegetables, and water in a slow-cooker or soup pot, let it cook low and slow for a day and then you’re done! What you’re left with is a nutrient-dense, delicious broth!
You can use this for so many things–cooking rice, flavoring sauces, braising vegetables, as a soup base, in your smoothies–but I enjoy it best warmed in a mug on a cold, dark winter afternoon, sometimes garnished with sliced green onions.
To understand the differences between stock and broth, go here.
Ingredients
UnitsScale
1lb, Beef Bones
3c. Filtered Water, plus more as needed
3 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
2 Large Carrots, scrubbed and roughly chopped
1 Sweet Potato, cubed
1 Yellow Onion, roughly chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, smashed with the side of a knife
1/4 Chopped Fresh Parsley
2 tsp. Fine Sea Salt
1 1/2 tsp. Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
Put the beef bones in a 6-quart slow cooker.
Pour in the water and vinegar, making sure the bones are covered by about an inch of water. Allow to sit without turning on the heat for 30 minutes. (Prep veggies during this time.)
Add the rest of the ingredients, turn the slow cooker to low, and cook for 16-24 hours, checking the water level every 3 hours or so and adding more water as needed to keep the bones covered.
Remove all the large solids with tongs or a slotted spoon.
Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain the broth into a 1-quart mason jar and discard the solids.
Notes
Pro-Tip: Pour the broth into an ice cube tray or silicone mold to freeze and store–add a couple cubes to your morning smoothie or just heat them up when you need a cup.
The broth will keep for up to a week in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Information and recipe excerpted from It Takes Guts by Ashleigh Vanhoute and can be purchased here.
Erin Skinner, registered Dietitian Nutritionist and board-certified Integrative and Functional Nutrition Care Provider says this about this recipe:
“One of the best things about bone broth is that there are infinite ways to customize the flavors. Although I use chicken most often, I will occasionally get some turkey and use those bones for broth. (Hello, post-Thanksgiving–don’t throw those bones away!) Aside from a whole turkey, you can also keep your eyes out for turkey legs or thighs as a nice way to mix it up. Another way I vary the flavors is with the vegetables, herbs, and spices. This recipe combines the benefits of bone broth with the anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin (found in turmeric) and garlic. Turmeric, garlic, and the amino acids from collagen (from the bones) all have solids evidence showing their anti-inflammatory properties. Your body–and your taste buds–will say thanks you!”
To understand the differences between stock and broth, go here.
Ingredients
UnitsScale
1 Turkey Carcass, 12-16lb range
4quarts Filtered Water, plus more as needed
1/4c. Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Large Onion, cut into quarters
6 Cloves Garlic, smashed with the side of a knife
2 tsp. Turmeric Powder
1 Bay Leaf
2 tsp. Fine Sea Salt
Instructions
Put the turkey carcass in a 6-quart slow cooker.
Pour in the water and vinegar, making sure the bones are covered by about an inch of water. (You may have to break down the carcass slightly to fit into the slow cooker.)
Let sit without turning on the heat for 30 minutes. (Prep veggies during this time.)
Add onion, garlic, spices, and salt to the slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 12-24 hours, checking the water level every 3 hours or so and adding more water as needed to keep the boned covered.
Remove all the large solids with tongs or a slotted spoon.
Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain the both into two 1-quart mason jars and discard the solids.
Notes
The broth will keep for up to a week in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Pro-Tip: Pour the broth into an ice cube tray or silicone mold to freeze and store–add a couple cubes to your morning smoothie or just heat them up when you need a cup.
Information and recipe excerpted from It Takes Guts by Ashleigh Vanhoute and can be purchased here.
