Citric Acid Free Classic Chicken Stock

Total time4 hr 15 min

Prep time15 min

Cook time3 hr 30 min

4.5

(5)

Store-bought broths and bouillon cubes are notorious for sneaking in citric acid as a preservative or flavor enhancer, which makes finding a truly clean stock surprisingly difficult. This homemade version sidesteps that problem entirely by building deep, golden flavor from scratch — nothing but chicken bones, aromatics, and time. The blanching step at the start is a small but meaningful move that pulls out impurities early, so the finished liquid is clear, clean, and genuinely rich. Onions, carrots, celery, garlic, tomato paste, and a handful of fresh herbs do all the heavy lifting, creating a stock that smells incredible as it simmers low and slow for three hours. Straining it through a fine-mesh sieve and chilling it overnight lets you skim off the fat cap for a result that's pure and versatile. Use it as the backbone of soups, braises, risottos, or sauces without a second thought about what's hiding in the ingredient list.

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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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