extra savory chicken stock

I have a few traditions, or if I’m being honest, compulsions when making my homemade chicken stock. First and foremost, I always start off with the carcass of my rosemary and thyme whole roasted chicken. It all started when, after a lovely dinner of roasted chicken, I drudged back into the kitchen knowing that before me lay the messy task of cleaning up leftover chicken bones and drippings. Out of sheer procrastination desperation (yes, that’s what I’m calling it), I put the lid back on the dutch oven, threw it in the refrigerator and said, “I’ll take care of this tomorrow.” Thankfully, when tomorrow rolled around I had enough sense to stick the dutch oven on the stove, add some water and veggies, and simmer it into a stock. And because I can’t stop meddling even when something is perfectly delicious, I’ve added a few ingredients along the way to give this broth a little more depth and a big punch of umami flavoring. Because when I sip on a mug of broth or taste test the stock, I want burning my tongue to be worth it (can you tell I’m not the world’s most patient person?). P.S. Coming very soon to Dahlia Kitchen is a chicken and wild rice soup, giving you the perfect chance to try your hand at making chicken stock.

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EXTRA SAVORY CHICKEN STOCK
yield: approximately 10 cups

Note: You will need a large pot for this recipe; I use a 7.25qt/6.7liter pot. You would probably be fine with something just a teeny bit smaller, but not significantly smaller.

Ingredients:
1 roughly 5lb whole roasted chicken, meat removed
half a lemon
1 whole head of garlic, top cut off
10+ cups water
2 tablespoons brown rice miso (also called genmai miso)
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon Worcesteshire
1 large yellow onion, diced
handful of fresh thyme sprigs
several sprigs of fresh rosemary
a couple knobs of ginger, peeled and chopped a few times
3 celery stalks, trimmed and diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 fresh bay leaves
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, or more to taste
salt, black pepper to taste

Directions

1. If starting with my rosemary and thyme whole roasted chicken: Remove the meat off your whole roasted chicken. If you cooked your chicken in a large enough pot, leave literally everything else in the pot (carcass, herbs, lemon, garlic, etc). If not, transfer all the drippings, herbs, garlic, lemon, chicken skin, the whole carcass, etc, to a pot big enough to make your stock. Next, add 10 cups of water, miso, soy sauce, Worcesteshire, onion, thyme, rosemary, ginger, celery, carrots, bay leaves, and nutritional yeast. If there is more room in your pot, add additional water, leaving at least one inch between the top of the pot and the level of the stock. Move on to step 2.

OR

If starting with a different whole roasted chicken: Combine all stock ingredients (except salt and black pepper) into an extra large pot on the stove. If there is more room in your pot, add additional water, leaving at least one inch between the top of the pot and the level of the stock. Move on to step 2.

2. Bring everything to a boil then reduce to a gentle, low simmer. Cover with a lid. Remove the lemon after 1 hour of simmering and at this point check if the stock needs any salt or pepper (I recommend setting a timer, one time I left the lemon in for hours and the broth turned out quite lemony). Go ahead and peek at the stock every now and then, giving it a stir, but for the most part you can just let it work it’s magic once it’s reached a gentle, low simmer. I recommend simmering the stock for at least 3-4 hours, but ideally closer to 7 or 8 hours.

3. When the stock has finished simmering, remove from heat, check one more time if it needs any salt or pepper, and let it cool. Strain the stock into a large pitcher or bowl using a sieve* (make sure you press the stock firmly through the sieve to get as much liquid as you can). You can keep the stock in your refrigerator for several days, in your freezer for 1 year, or use immediately for another cooking endeavor.

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