Chicken Stock

Everyone always says one should make her own chicken broth. It's not always in the cards to have several hours to kill before you want to whip up some soup for dinner. This is why Sundays are great days for soup. I made this fantastic broth to go with a Thai Chicken Soup (recipe coming) that really depended on a flavorful broth. Yum! There was luckily a bit leftover so I poured the extra broth into a ziploc bag and popped it in the freezer to use on my next soup.

Makes about 3 quarts

Ingredients:

3 lb chicken wings

any extra chicken bones you've been storing in your freezer (or just get a few more wings or other chicken parts)

4 quarts water

1 onion, quartered

8 garlic cloves, skin on

1 celery rib, quartered

1 carrot, quartered

6 parsley sprigs

1 large thyme sprig

1 bay leaf

Directions:

Put all ingredients in a large stock put and bring to a boil, skimming any froth. Reduce to a bare simmer and cook, uncovered, for 3.5 hours, occasionally skimming any foam and fat. Pour the stock through a sieve lined with damp paper towels and discard solids. Skim any fat. 

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen and wanted to try it, since I now own a slow cooker. It could not be easier, and it's a great, rich stock with pretty much no fat or any sort of foamy scummy stuff to remove. We had leftover wings from the Super Bowl, so it was perfect. I froze the stock in ziplock bags and noted how much went into each and the date. Can't wait to make soup.

Makes about 3 quarts.

Ingredients:

3 lb chicken wings