Beef Free Classic Chicken Stock

Total time4 hr 15 min

Prep time15 min

Cook time3 hr 30 min

4.5

(5)

A deeply golden, aromatic stock built from chicken bones, fresh vegetables, and a handful of herbs, this is the kind of foundational recipe that quietly elevates everything else you cook. The blanching step at the start is a small but brilliant move — it pulls out impurities early so the finished liquid is clean, clear, and genuinely beautiful. Tomato paste adds a subtle depth that keeps the flavor from tasting flat or one-dimensional, while the long, lazy simmer coaxes every bit of richness out of the bones without any rushing. Because it's made entirely from poultry and produce, there's no concern about beef-derived ingredients sneaking in the way they sometimes do with store-bought broths and bouillon cubes. The result is a stock that's 100% your own — you control what goes in, and you know exactly what you're pouring into your soups, risottos, braises, and sauces. Chilling it overnight and skimming the fat cap before use is the final touch that takes it from good to genuinely restaurant-quality. Make a big batch, freeze it in portions, and you'll always have something better than anything off the shelf waiting for you.

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Ingredients

8 servings

3 lb chicken bones and carcass (or a whole 3–4 lb chicken, cut into pieces)
2 medium yellow onions, quartered (skin on)
3 medium carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
3 stalks celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp black peppercorns
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
6 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
12 cups cold water
1 tsp salt

Instructions

1
Place the chicken bones in a large stockpot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then drain and rinse the bones under cold running water to remove any grey foam or impurities. Rinse the pot clean.
2
Return the blanched bones to the clean pot. Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, tomato paste, peppercorns, thyme, bay leaf, parsley, and salt. Pour in the 12 cups of cold water — the water should cover the bones by at least 1 inch; add more if needed.

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