We’re all put off making stock on occasion, by the sheer need to be around as the pot simmers those old bones and bits left over from any roast we’ve had for dinner, but there is another way.
Determined to use my Soup Maker to its full extent, I tried making stock as a test, to see if it was really possible to do. Any soups always taste fabulous with fresh stock, so it’s a no brainer for me. I put the carcass or bones into a pot as soon as it’s cooked, so that I can freeze any leftovers for another day. I don’t let it cool, as I’ve always lived by the rule of only one reheat after meat is cooked.
It’s fairly simple. I add nothing as I prefer to add my extra ingredients at the cooking stage, but you could add different options.
Ingredients: Carcass, Bones or Leftover Meat
Optional:
– Salt & Pepper
– Stock Pot
– Garlic
– Onions etc
Add any bones, or chopped up pieces of leftover meat to your soup maker. You do need to ensure there is enough room to put on your lid if you use a kettle version.
Method:
Step 1
Add your ingredients to the soup maker, choose the chunky option and run through the cycle.
Step 2
If you like your stock to be stronger, run it through a second cycle.
Step 3
Sieve your liquid, to separate the bones & meat from the liquid stock, and now it’s ready for use. You can freeze the stock if it’s freshly made, but if you’ve let the meat or the carcass cool, I’d use it straight away.
How much liquid do you add to the mixture of bones and meat?
Always fill above the minimum line and below the maximum line, as per your machine instructions. Never use a smooth or blend setting with anything other than soup ingredients. I make my stock in the soupmaker, but I imagine that not all soupmakers are suitable. If you plan to do it this way, it’s at your own risk, as are all things soupmaker. I try things and report back on how they work for me. Good luck.
I always freeze bones until I have enough, then put them in the slow cooker overnight with some carrot, half an onion and some herbs. In the morning I strain it and freeze in quite large quantities. When it comes to making soup, I then put a quantity of stock in the soup maker and add boiling water to top it up. It works fine, tastes very good – much better than a stock cube – and has lead to no illness! Someone recommended this way to me so had no qualms about the frozen bones thing.
I like using those little stock pots that you can buy now, which is good because I never buy chickens or anything like that. Also I always tend to use vegetable stock. Another thing which I think is perculiar to me is that I can’t bring myself to use Oxo cubes but I could use Knorr, weird I know lol