HCP Dishes!
Recipe of the Day:
Chicken Broth
Posted by hcpadmin
Tuesday February 24, 2009Homemade chicken broth is an essential ingredient in soup making, risottos, and stews. We like cutting up a whole chicken and adding some extra parts (you can keep them in the freezer), but if you have a large cooker, you can just put in the whole chicken and cook for the maximum time with little fuss. The cooking time is very flexible.
Overview
- Makes about 2 1/2 quarts
- Cooker: Large round or oval
- Settings and Cook Times: HIGH for 1 hour, then LOW for 6 to 16 hours
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 pounds chicken parts with bones, such as backs, necks, legs, wings, and carcass; or one 3- to 4-pound whole chicken, cut up, fat trimmed and liver removed
- 1 large yellow onion, quartered
- 1 large carrot, cut into chunks
- 2 to 3 ribs celery with leaves
- 8 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley with stems
- A few grinds of black pepper or a few black peppercorns
- Salt (optional) to taste
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in the slow cooker, except the salt. Add cold water to cover by 2 to 3 inches. Cover and cook on HIGH for 1 hour.
- Skim off any surface foam with a large spoon. Cover, turn the cooker to LOW, and cook for 6 to 16 hours. If the water cooks down below the level of the ingredients, add a bit more boiling water.
- Uncover and let cool to lukewarm. Set a large colander lined with cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl and pour the broth through to strain. Press on the vegetables to extract all the liquid. Discard the vegetables, skin, and bones. If desired, reserve the meat for soup, salad, or another purpose. Taste the broth and season with salt if needed, or wait to salt until you are using the broth. Refrigerate.
- The broth is ready for use and can be refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to 3 days. Or remove the congealed fat from the surface and pour the broth into airtight plastic freezer storage containers, leaving 2 inches at the top to allow for expansion. Freeze for up to 4 months. Whether refrigerated or frozen (and defrosted), make sure the broth is brought to a boil when using it.
Excerpted from Not Your Mother’s© Slow Cooker Cookbook, by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann © 2005, and used by permission of The Harvard Common Press.
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