You are reading False Choices, a newsletter that asks the question of whether modern life allows more and better choices than the familiar ones. We believe it does. Canned soup is ok sometimes, though we’re not especially impressed with the watery stock offered on the store shelf. Is there are better way to make soup at home?
This week’s recipe is a simple how to on making good stock at home, and turning it into a simple soup. We are soup aficionados at our home because we live in the true north, above the 45th parallel. Around November 1st when we start seeing our breath in the living room, out thoughts turn to soup. Good soup starts with good stock, but how do you make good stock at home? Here’s some ideas.
Chicken stock: Good chicken stock starts now because grilling season is upon us. Do yourself a favor and buy whole chickens as often as possible. When you cut up a whole chicken for the grill you are left with the back, the neck and possibly some other bones. Start a container in the freezer to keep these bones. This fall when the weather turns back you’ll be ready Freddy to make stock.
Turkey stock: Your thanksgiving turkey, of course; save all the bones and skin, it’s stock gold!
Beef stock: This has become more difficult to make since the wise guy young chefs decided that ox tails were delicious. It does not take a lot of convincing, to be honest. So ox tails are out of reach now, more expensive than steak in many cases. Next best bet is beef shank which you can normally find in thick cross cuts. Two or three of these will make a good stock, and while they are again not as inexpensive as they once were, they’re still a good value.
Ham stock: Avoid the heavily sugared hams, these unfortunately make a bad stock. Instead, buy a good smoked ham and when you have eaten the last ham sandwich you can stomach for while, take the bone and whatever ham is left on it and set it aside for a stock.
Making stock at home:
A pressure cooker is not an absolute necessity but you will definitely notice a difference in the quality of your stock. They offer quality stainless steel pressure cookers today, with a silicone gasket. The cooker helps to remove the good proteins from the bones, leaving you will a very flavorful, gelatin like stock. Many people own a Instant pot, which is a close cousin to the pressure cooker and can perform as a substitute.
Place the bones in the pot, or cooker if you have one, and add the following vegetables (no need to peel any of them) and seasonings:
One large onion - for the beef stock you can place the onion, split in two, above a flame and darken it. This will add both flavor and color to the stock. For the other stocks, add the onion raw, again split in two.
Garlic - I see some heads that are smaller than a clove of our garlic. We add two large cloves, both as wide as a US quarter. If you have small heads, then add the whole thing, split in two.
One medium carrot, whole
Three stalks of celery, washed
Tsp of whole black peppercorns
Tbsp on dried thyme leave
Two bay leaves
If you have a tomato or two that have seen better days, use them in the stock. Otherwise a Tbsp of tomato paste works fine.
Other possibilities include the green of a leek, well washed, parsley stems, a couple whole cloves, but none of these are necessary; just nice to haves.
Cover the bones and vegetables and flavorings with cold water. Bring to the boil slowly and then turn down the heat until the stock is just at a high simmer for two hours. If using a cooker or an instapot, when it starts to whistle turn it down and let it go for one hour.
When the stock is done, let it cool until you can pour it off through a sieve without the threat of bodily injury. I always pour off the broth with the container or bowl in the sink, to avoid a mess. After the first pour to remove most of the broth, the second pour must be done slowly to avoid an avalanche of bones. Remove any meat from the bones and add it to the stock. You can freeze the stock in quart containers of course. You are halfway home to fabulous soup. Here are two simple spring soups for busy families.
Beef Soup
This is probably the easiest of the soups that we make. After we have a good broth and have removed the meat from the bones, we season the broth with salt, more thyme or marjoram, and serve the broth with vermicelli noodles. Sometime we garnish it with lightly cooked mushrooms and minced leeks if we have them, but it’s not that important. We have also used our beef broth, flavored with ginger, garlic, scallions and soy, to make a soup for Asian dumplings.
Potato Soup
One large onion diced, cooked in 2 Tbsp butter with a tbsp of salt, 2 cups of diced raw potato. When the onions are soft add the potato and a quart of chicken or turkey stock. When the potatoes are soft add a bunch of parsley, cut of the top of the bunch, mostly leaves, and mince it. Cook gently until the parsley loses its color. Before serving, ladle 2 ounces of broth into a bowl with 2 tbsp of sour cream and whisk them together, then return the mixture to the pot and serve. Excellent lunch with a light sandwich.