Tag: stock

• 

  Condensed Mushroom Broth From Scratch

  I love making this simple mushroom broth concentrate. Easily stored as cubes in the freezer it brings depth to soups, stews, pastas and the like. The ingredients are simple, 3l of water, your mushrooms of choice, an onion and several pinches of salt to get the flavours going.

  Note: Takes about 8 hours in a slow cooker and around 4 hours in an electric skillet.

  

  Steps

  1. Preparing ingredients
  2. Simmering
  3. Straining
  4. Storing and using

  Equipment

  • 1 chef’s knife
  • 1 soup pot or electric skillet
  • Small meshed sieve/strainer

  Ingredients

  • 3L water
  • 1 brown onion, halved
  • 6 – 8 large white mushrooms, rough chopped
  • Salt, a small amount to bring out the flavours

  Preparing the ingredients

  Gently rinse the mushrooms to remove any dirt, then chop them into large pieces.

  

  Peel the onion then slice in half. Add everything to your slow cooker pot or skillet and add 3l of water.

  Simmering

  Slowly reduce the liquid, at a simmer, until you have about 1.5 cups remaining. Remove the onion and the mushrooms.

  

  Straining

  You don’t have to but I strained the broth using a fine mesh.

  

  Storing and using

  If you are using a  portion in the next few days, simply pour some into a reused glass jar and pop it in the fridge.

  Otherwise, you can use an ice cube tray to make handy to use portions.

  

   

  

  Chuck them straight from the freezer into your dishes, for that flavour boost.

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more stock making posts and kitchen related thriftiness : 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  March 10, 2022

• 

  Condensed Chicken Bone Broth From Scratch

  This simple chicken bone broth is slowly reduced, over the course of a day, into a protein and collagen rich flavour boosting concentrate. Easily stored as cubes in the freezer, I make it anytime I get enough chicken frames. The flavours are kept simple, just chicken bones,  one onion and several pinches of salt to get the flavours going.

  Note: Takes about 8 hours in a slow cooker.

  When chilled it will set and keep for a several days in the fridge: 

  

  Steps

  1. Preparing the frames
  2. Simmering
  3. Straining and removing fat
  4. Storing and using

  Equipment

  • 1 chef’s knife
  • 1 slow cooker
  • Small meshed sieve/strainer

  Ingredients

  • 3L water
  • 1 brown onion, halved
  • ~4 chicken frames or the equivalent in mixed off cuts
  • Salt, a small amount to bring out the flavours

  Preparing the frames

  1. Blanche all of the chicken frames to get a cleaner bone broth.
  2. Peel the onion then slice in half. 
  3. Add everything to your slow cooker pot and cover with water to the max limit.

  

  Simmering

  Slowly reduce the liquid you have about 2 cups remaining. I used my slow cooker for 8 hours and then a high simmer until I got the consistency I was after. 

  

  Straining and removing fat

  I use a fat seperating jug to remove the skim of fat you will get as the liquid cools. Then you can use a fine mesh to remove any small bones and the onion.

  

  Storing and using

  If you are using a  portion in the next few days, simply pour some into a reused glass jar and pop it in the fridge.

  

  Otherwise, you can use an ice cube tray to make handy to use portions.

  

  

  You can then defrost the cubes, add some water and hey presto, you have liquid broth.

  

   

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more stock\broth making posts and kitchen related thriftiness : 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  March 7, 2022

• 

  Italian Vegetable Stock: Brodo Vegetale

  This full flavoured vegetable stock is another amazing Italian recipe from giallo zafferano. 

  It couldn’t get any simpler. The holy trinity of vegetables (onion, carrot, celery) and a tomato is all you need.

  

  Note:

  1. Takes about 20 minutes to prepare and an hour to simmer.
  2. You will get about 1 – 1.5 litres of stock that keeps for a few days in the fridge and also freezes well.
  3. Making stock is a great way to use your older veggies up, I even got the tomato from the grocer’s seconds bin.
  4. You are also reducing food packaging waste and if you source local ingredients you are cutting down on food transport miles.

  Steps

  Equipment

  Ingredients

  Preparing the vegetables

  1. Peel the onion then slice in half. 
  2. Splash a bit of olive oil in a stock pot and cook the inside face of onion halves until slightly charred.
  3. Remove the onion carefully and wipe the stock pot free of oil with a cloth or paper towel.
  4. Return the onion to the pot.
  5. Roughly chop the 2 celery sticks and the carrot.
  6. Halve the tomato.
  7. Chuck the lot into the pot along with 2L of water, salt to taste and a sprinkle of whole peppercorns.

  

  

  Simmering

  Bring to to a rolling boil and then simmer on low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.

  Straining

  Use a small meshed sieve or strainer to remove the vegetables. These can go into your compost bin.

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more Italian cooking secrets and ways to use your stock : 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  March 21, 2021

• 

  How To Thicken Gravy, Sauce, Stew And More With Cornflour

  When you are making stews, casseroles, sauces and the like, it is sometimes hard to get the balance between flavour and thickness. Your dish might have the right taste but be too watery.

  Continue to cook it and you might ruin the flavours by over cooking it.

  So what do you do?

  Well you can use cornflour. You don’t want to stir it into what you are making however. This will just make the liquid lumpy.

  Instead, take remove some of the hot cooking liquid and add a tablespoon of cornflour to it. Mix until you have no lumps.

  

  Add a little to the dish and mix it in. Repeat until you get the consistency you want. 

  Here I had a pie filling that tasted right but would have made for soggy pies. Now it is ready:

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more tips and posts about cooking ingredients: 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  April 25, 2020

• 

  Italian Chicken Stock: Brodo Di Pollo

  This is another amazing Italian stock recipe from giallo zafferano. Traditionally it calls for an old hen (una gallina) but I have used two free-range chicken carcasses that still had some meat on them.

  I want to share with you my experience following the recipe. The result is a lovely clear broth that tastes and smells amazing! 

  Note:

  1. Takes about 20 minutes to prepare and an hour to simmer.
  2. You will get about 1 – 1.5 litres of stock.
  3. I wrote about their beef stock here and the vegetable version here.

  Steps

  1. Blanching the chicken
  2. Preparing the vegetables
  3. Simmering
  4. Sieving the broth
  5. Freezing and using

  Equipment

  • 1 chef’s knife
  • 1 fry pan
  • 1 large sauce pan or stock pot
  • Small meshed sieve/strainer
  • Paper towel (optional)

  Ingredients

  • ~1kg of the chicken frames, off cuts etc
  • 2L water
  • 2 celery sticks, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 1 onion, halved
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • A few parsley sprigs
  • Salt to taste
  • Black peppercorns (whole or ground) to taste

  Blanching the chicken

  This is my addition to the recipe. I blanch the chicken quickly first to remove the scum you get when you boil chicken. It reduces the fat of the finished stock too. See my method here – blanching chicken.

  

  Much cleaner:

  

  Preparing the vegetables

  1. Roughly chop the 2 celery sticks and 2 carrots and add them to the stock pot.
  2. Peel the onion then slice it in half. 
  3. Splash a bit of olive oil in a fry pan and cook the inside face of onion halves until slightly charred.
  4. Add the now charred and softened onion halves to the stock pot.
  5. Add to the stock pot the:
     • 2 garlic cloves
     • 2 bay leaves
     • parsley
     • 2L of water;
     • Salt and peppercorns.
  6. Finally, add the chicken.

  

  

  

  Simmering

  Bring to to a rolling boil and then simmer on low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.

  Sieving the broth

  1. Use a small meshed sieve or strainer to remove the meat, bones and vegetables.
  2. If using straight away to make a meal, you can use a Gravy And Fat Separator or chill slightly and remove the fat layer as it forms with a ladle/spoon or paper towel.
  3. If you are not using the broth immediately (and this is my preference), use the above techniques and then freeze the broth.

  Freezing and using

  When I come to use the frozen broth I scrape off the fat layer, if any,  with a spoon. Then I let the stock defrost.

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more Italian cooking secrets and uses for stock : 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  April 24, 2020

• 

  Stock Tip Blanching Chicken

  Blanching chicken meat before using it to make stock or broth removes fat and other impurities. This results in a clearer healthier broth!

  You aren’t cooking the chicken, just preparing/cleaning it. 

  Simply

  Add the chicken meat, frames etc into a pot of cold water. 

  

  Bring the water to a boil and then remove the scum by pouring it through a sieve. I even give the meat a quick rinse.

  

  So instead of your stock looking like the picture above when you start making it, you get this:

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more stock and chicken recipes: 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  April 13, 2020

• 

  Italian Beef Stock: Brodo Di Manzo

  The amazing Italian cooking website giallo zafferano presents this traditional Italian beef broth just perfectly.

  I made it the other day and share with you the steps below along with a few tricks to remove most of the fat. The result is a lovely clear broth that tastes and smells amazing! 

  Note:

  1. Takes about 20 minutes to prepare and 3 hours to simmer.
  2. You will get about 1 litre of stock.
  3. I wrote about their chicken stock here and will post the vegetable version soon.

  Steps

  1. Preparing the vegetables
  2. Adding the meat and bones
  3. Simmering
  4. Sieving the broth
  5. Freezing and using

  Equipment

  • 1 chef’s knife
  • 1 fry pan
  • 1 large sauce pan or stock pot
  • Small meshed sieve/strainer
  • Fat separator (optional)
  • Paper towel (optional)

  Ingredients

  • ~1kg of the cheaper beef cuts
  • ~400g of beef bones
  • 2 celery sticks, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 1 onion, halved
  • 100g tomatoes, halved
  • 4L water
  • A dash of olive oil
  • 2 cloves
  • Salt to taste
  • Black peppercorns (whole or ground) to taste

  Preparing the vegetables

  1. Roughly chop the 2 celery sticks and 2 carrots and add them to the stock pot.
  2. Cut the 100g of fresh tomatoes in half and add them too.
  3. Peel the onion then slice it in half. 
  4. Splash a bit of olive oil in a fry pan and cook the onion until it is slightly charred.
  5. Add the now charred and softened onion halves to the stock pot.
  6. Add the 2 cloves and then pepper to taste.

  

  

  Adding the meat and the bones

  1. Add the ~1kg beef and the ~400g of beef bones to the stock pot.
  2. Add 4L of water to the stock pot.
  3. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat.

  

  

  Simmering

  Simmer on very low heat for about 3 hours or until there is about 1L of liquid remaining. Stir occasionally.

  Sieving the broth

  1. Use a small meshed sieve or strainer to remove the meat, bones and vegetables.
  2. If using straight away to make a meal, you can use a Gravy And Fat Separator or chill slightly and remove the fat layer as it forms with a ladle/spoon or paper towel.
  3. If you are not using the broth immediately (and this is my preference), use the above techniques and then freeze the broth.

  

  

  Freezing and using

  When I come to use the frozen broth I do this:

  1. Scrape off the fat layer with a spoon.
  2. Let it defrost slowly, you can use a spoon or paper towel to absorb even more fat.

  

  Looking clean:

  

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  Here are some more Italian cooking secrets and uses for stock : 

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  April 7, 2020

• 

  Asian Style Chicken Stock Base

  This simple chicken stock is a great base from which to make a huge range of Asian dishes. I use it to make Udon soup and when I am poaching chicken thighs for example.

  There are three stages in making this stock. 

  Firstly throw ginger, garlic and sliced onion into a large pot of water. Add a chicken frame and bring the whole lot to a rolling boil.

  You could also add a few abalone feet for extra flavour. It all depends on what you intend to use the stock for.

  

  Then turn down the heat and simmer the stock. There will be a layer of fat scum that you can scoop of with a slotted spoon or sieve.

  

  

  Simmer for at least 2 hours and then strain the liquid. 

  Enjoy,

  PK

  

  If you liked this post you might like these too. 🙂

  Asian cusine:

  Using stock:

  Written by

  PK

  ·

  June 15, 2019

• 

  PK’S Red Wine And Green Peppercorn Sauce

  One of my favourite meals is a thick juicy beef steak smothered in a creamy pepper sauce. I make a white wine version that makes for a mean surf and turf but this is my red wine version with green peppercorns and crème fraîche. 

  

  Steps

  1. Making the sauce (~15 minutes)
  2. Serving

  Ingredients

  • 1 small handful of parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 small handful of spring onions (green tops only), sliced
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 Tbsp green peppercorns
  • 1/4 cup red wine (I used a Merlot)
  • 1/2 cup beef stock (try Italian Beef Stock: Brodo Di Manzo)
  • 1/2 cup crème fraîche
  • 1 tsp brandy

  Equipment

  • 1 chef’s knife
  • 1 chopping board
  • 1 wooden spoon
  • 1 small saucepan

  Making the sauce

  1. Chop the small handfuls of parsley and spring onion tops. 
  2. Add to the saucepan along with the 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1 Tbsp green peppercorns and the 1/4 cup of red wine.
  3. Cook on low, stirring often, until the red wine has thoroughly reduced.
  4. Add the 1/2 cup beef stock and 1/2 cup crème fraîche.
  5. Mix everything well and simmer until you get the consistency you desire.
  6. Add 1 tsp of brandy and mix again.

  Serving

  I served the sauce over a pork rack replete with crackling, steamed vegetables and Yorkshire puds.

  

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

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  Written by

  PK

  ·

  April 11, 2019

• 

  Corn Cob Stock

  Recently I have become obsessed with using whole corn cobs in my vegetable and meat stocks. They give the stock a nice savoury depth.  

  I love how you can take an old cob languishing in the back of the fridge and give it a new lease on life.

  I freeze them if I have too many though.  

  Then I just chuck them in my slow cooker when I need to make stock.

  

  Enjoy,

  PK

  ---

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  Written by

  PK

  ·

  January 10, 2019