Homemade Chicken Stock

Homemade chicken stock is easy to make and highly versatile. Using leftover chicken scraps that otherwise would have ended up in the trash, it’s a great way to cut down on waste, and because of the long simmer, it’s mostly hands off while cooking. Make a large batch and you can freeze it to have some on-hand whenever you need a small amount.

Chicken stock is a great thing to have on-hand, as it can be used in so many recipes and applications. It can make so much more than just chicken soups. This simple homemade chicken stock recipe is also versatile and can be changed up with a few small tweaks for many different uses.

The Many Uses of Homemade Chicken Stock

Soups – The most obvious and usual use for stocks is in making soups. You’re not limited to simply a chicken noodle though, as chicken stock can be used in potato soups, chicken tortilla, Chinese wonton soup, tomato soup, and many more.

Rice Dishes – Replacing some or all the water with chicken stock can really add depth to many rice dishes like jambalaya, mushroom risotto, paella, or even just white and brown rice side dishes.

Stews and Braises – Braising chicken with chicken stock really enhances the flavor and keeps the flavor rich instead of losing flavor as it cooks. You can also swap out beef stock for chicken stock in recipes like goulash and the sauces for schnitzel. I also use chicken stock in Cajun dishes like gumbo and etouffee (if you skip making a shrimp stock).

Pan Sauces – Skip using the non-stick pans and you can make a great pan sauce after cooking your protein by utilizing the fond (the pieces of food that stuck to the pan) and ingredients like chicken stock, wine, butter, garlic, etc. You can also add some flour and butter to the fond and chicken stock to make a rich gravy right in the pan as well.

Chicken Stock Vs Broth

Technically speaking, you can use the terms interchangeably. Most of the stocks and broths at grocery stores don’t really show a difference between the ingredients other than the name on the box.

That said, however, there are differences between a stock and a broth.

Stock – A stock is typically made by cooking animal bones low and slow with some added aromatics and vegetables. The long cooking of the bones and collagen releases gelatin. This is what gives a stock it’s richer mouthfeel over a broth. A stock shouldn’t have salt added to it either. Stocks are typically reduced or have more seasoning added to them when cooked in a recipe, so adding salt to the stock can make a finished dish way too salty.

Broth – Broths are usually made more quickly and use the meat and vegetables instead of bones. This gives a broth a lighter and thinner taste. A broth is also usually seasoned more to add flavor, including the addition of salt. If buying a broth in the store instead of making your own, I always recommend the low-sodium or salt free option.

White Stock Vs Brown Stock

Not mentioned as often, but still important is that stocks can also be made as a white or brown stock. You can use either option for every application, but there are some differences that can make using one over the other preferable if you want a specific outcome.

A white stock is typically lighter in color and less cloudy, as most of the impurities are removed from the stock as it cooks. A brown stock is usually cloudy and darker in color and the bones are typically roasted prior to cooking the stock. White stock can be used to make a Velouté, while a brown stock is used to make an Espagnole sauce. These are two of the five “mother sauces” in French cuisine. I won’t go into more detail here as that’s way beyond the scope of this recipe.

Specifically making a white or brown stock for French cooking gets a little more technical and involved, so I won’t be going into that much detail here. Typically, an acid is added to the stock to help break down the bones and collagen, such as white wine for a white stock, and tomato paste for a brown stock. In this recipe, I’m simply adding a splash of vinegar for the same effect.

Ingredients for Homemade Chicken Stock

The ingredients for a chicken stock are fairly simple: chicken parts, water, aromatics, a mirepoix, and a splash of an acid.

Chicken – For a stock you’ll want bones and connective tissues that contain collagen. In this recipe I recommend cooked or uncooked chicken carcasses or frames and wing tips. If you buy whole chickens to use in recipes, save the unused carcass for stock. The leftover carcass frames from a store-bought rotisserie are also great to save and use, and if you make chicken wings a lot, keep saving up those wing tips.

Water – You’ll use a lot of water in this recipe, as it will reduce some while cooking. You’re basically making a highly flavored water in the end.

Aromatics – Seasonings can vary from recipe to recipe, but the most commonly used in chicken stock are black peppercorns (not ground pepper), thyme, parsley, and bay leaves. I’ve also seen rosemary, lemongrass, dill, and others used.

Mirepoix – A classic French term for a commonly used flavor base in soups and stews, mostly in Western cooking. A mirepoix is typically made from diced onion, carrot, and celery at a ratio of 2:1:1. Because of the long cook time with stocks, cut the vegetables into chunks instead of a small dice. Other additions typically used are leeks, garlic, or fennel.

Acid – As mentioned above, an acid such as white wine or tomato paste is typically added in white and brown stocks respectively, but to keep it simple when you’re not shooting for a French “mother sauce”, simply add a splash of white or cider vinegar to the water. This helps in breaking down the collagen.

Chicken for Chicken Stock

Chicken stock needs 3 main things from its protein source: bones, collagen, and a little meat for flavor.

Chicken Breasts – Too lean for stock and a waste of meat as a 3+ hour cook time will ruin them.

Skin-on, Bone-in Thighs and Legs – Not a bad choice, but still a waste of good meat. While chicken skin does have a lot of collagen, it also has a lot of fat which can make the stock too oily and slick. The thighs and legs also contain more fat than other parts of the chicken.

Wing Tips – These are a great choice for stock but trying to save up 4 pounds or more from just the tips requires a LOT of wings, so they need a little more to supplement.

Whole Chickens – Not a bad choice but will require a lot more work. Too large to easily cook with and cover with water so you’ll need to break them down. Covered in fatty skin and pockets of fat that can make the stock oily. Surprisingly lacking in flavor as well for a stock.

Chicken Carcasses – Whether from whole, raw chickens, or leftovers from a rotisserie, these provide good flavor but not enough on their own.

Mixing it up seems to work best. Save wing tips and carcasses in the freezer until you have roughly 4 pounds. You can also ask a butcher for waste pieces they may be willing to sell or give to you. Otherwise you’ll want to break down whole chickens and remove as much skin as you can.

How to Make Homemade Chicken Stock

This recipe is for a version of a brown chicken stock, so the directions will have extra steps. At the end I’ll mention what you can skip for a clearer, white stock version instead.

Start by heating a large pot with a splash of oil to medium-high and adding the chicken pieces. Working in batches, sear the chicken for a few minutes and remove to cool. Turn the heat to medium-low and add one onion, sliced.

Using poultry shears or a butcher’s knife, chop up a lot of the chicken carcasses and wing tips. Add them back to the stock pot with the onion and stir to combine. Turn the heat to low and cover the pot. Let the meat and onion sweat for 20 minutes.

Remove the lid, add the rest of the ingredients, and crank up the heat. Bring the water to just shy of boiling and then lower the temperature to a simmer. Allow to cook, uncovered for 3 hours.

While it cooks, occasionally skim the foam off the top with a ladle.

Once finished cooking, pour the stock through a fine mesh strainer to remove all the solids. Discard the solids.

You should have about 8 cups/2 quarts of stock from the original 12 cups of water. If it’s more than 8 cups, reduce it a little more on the stove. If it’s less than 8 cups, add a little water.

Once cooled, pour into glass canning jars and place in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight. The fat will rise to the top as it cools and be easier to skim off as it solidifies.

At this point it is ready to be used in recipes, or you can further reduce it for a concentrated stock.

If you want to concentrate the stock, pour it into a pot and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat to a strong simmer and continue cooking for 30-40 minutes until reduced by half.

*If you want a cleaner, white stock version of this, it’s easier and faster to make. Simply skip the browning of the chicken, don’t cut the bones, and skip the sweating step. Keep the onion, but don’t slice and cook it, just quarter it like the other onion and add it to the stock pot with the rest. Don’t skip the skimming either and try to skim every 10-15 minutes during the first hour, and every 20-30 minutes for the rest of the cook time. To make the finished stock even cleaner, strain the stock once to remove solids, and then strain again with cheesecloth or muslin over the strainer to remove as many impurities as you can.

Storing and Freezing Chicken Stock

Once finished cooking, defatting, and optionally reducing the chicken stock, it should keep in the refrigerator for about a week. You can also freeze it up to 6 months, though it will start losing flavor after 3 months.

I recommend storing the stock in cheap canning jars, whatever size works best for you. A great tip for freezing chicken stock is to reduce it and then freeze it in ice cube trays. Once frozen, move the cubes of stock to an airtight freezer bag. Now you’ll have just the right amount frozen and on-demand for recipes that call for a small amount of stock without having to buy and open an entire quart container for a few tablespoons of stock.

📋 Recipe