Enjoyed a great ham for the holidays? Don’t throw out that bone! This homemade ham stock recipe is simple to make and great for using in other recipes.
Whether you call it ham stock or ham bone broth, this homemade stock is easy to make. While perfect for making after a holiday with a ham bone and scraps, you can also make this anytime with fresh veggies and ham hocks instead.
Buying stocks from the grocery store is fine and works great in a pinch, but nothing beats homemade ham stock, or any other homemade stock. The mouthfeel is velvety, the flavor is intense, and it’s made from fresh, natural ingredients without preservatives and added chemicals.
Like my homemade turkey stock, this ham stock is perfect for tossing together after a holiday. Save that ham bone after baking and carving your ham for dinner. You’ll probably have leftover vegetables from making sides as well, or you can hold onto any scraps you have from peeling and chopping them. You can also freeze these scraps and bones to use later when you’re ready to make ham stock.
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🥘 Ingredients for Homemade Ham Stock
All you really need for homemade ham stock is a ham bone and water. I do recommend adding the rest of the ingredients to give it deeper flavor though and you can tweak these to try other combinations.
Ham Bone – After carving a bone-in ham, you can keep the bone in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or in the freezer for at least 3 months. I made this recipe from the leftover bone from my maple bourbon glazed ham. If you don’t have a ham bone, you can also make ham stock from 2-3 ham hocks/shanks as well.
Veggies – I use a standard mirepoix mix of onion, celery, and carrots for the stock, as well as some garlic. You can also use scraps if you save them for recipes like this. Just give them a rough chop and even the garlic I just smash with the flat of a knife and leave the skin on.
Herbs – For herbs I use fresh parsley and thyme with a dry bay leaf. This is also a great way to use up any leftover herbs you bought for a holiday meal.
Seasoning – I keep things simple here and just add some black peppercorns. The ham bone tends to be salty already, and I recommend never adding salt to a stock. If you use homemade stock for a soup broth, salt it then, otherwise salting and reducing twice can lead to an overly salty flavor.
Water – This recipe makes about 10 cups of homemade ham bone broth, which is reduced from about 16 cups of water that you’ll need to cover all the ingredients in a large stock pot.
🐖 Ham Stock Vs Ham 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 stock and 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. In homemade stocks this is kind of up to the cook, but if you use salt, I’d suggest adding it near the end.
Broth – Broths are usually made more quickly and use meat and vegetables instead of bones. This gives the broth a lighter and thinner taste. The broth is also usually seasoned more to add flavor, including the addition of salt. If buying broth in the store instead of making your own, I always recommend the low-sodium or salt free option so that you can tailor it to your needs yourself.
🔪 How to Make Ham Stock
If you use fresh vegetables, start by chopping them into large chunks. No need to peel the carrots and you can use celery with leaves and all. Simply smash garlic cloves and you can leave the skin on. Toss everything into a large stock pot or Dutch-oven.
Place the ham bone on top of the veggies and add enough water to cover everything, at least 16 cups if you can fit it all in your pot. If using a frozen ham bone, you don’t have to thaw it first.
Toss the herbs and peppercorns into the pot and begin heating it over medium high heat. Bring it to a low boil, then cover the pot and reduce heat to medium low.
Continue to simmer at a low heat for 3-4 hours, occasionally skimming the surface to remove any scum that forms. Give it a stir occasionally also, just to keep any vegetables from sticking to the bottom and burning. If the water seems like it is evaporating too quickly, add some more water and lower the temperature slightly.
Once reduced and finished cooking, turn off the heat and you can remove some of the larger pieces with tongs. Carefully pour the remaining stock through a fine mesh strainer into another pot. You can repeat this process 1-2 times more and/or strain through a cheesecloth if you want a very clear stock.
Portion the stock into canning jars and allow it to cool completely before refrigerating. You’re now ready to use it for any other recipe you would like.
🥗 What to Make with Ham Stock
Homemade ham stock is great for soups that feature ham or bacon but can also be used in other savory applications. Some soups, like ham bone soup or split pea soup, you can actually use the bone while making the soup instead of making the stock first. Try ham stock in soups like:
- Split pea soup
- Ham bone soup
- Creamy ham and potato soup
- Ham and vegetable soup
- Various bean soups
- Various lentil soups
Other uses for ham stock or ham bones include:
- Cheesy scalloped potatoes with ham
- Ham and dumplings
- Cajun red beans and rice
- Southern collard greens
If making recipes with the ham bone itself, be sure to pull and cut off any of the meat after cooking the dish (like collard greens) and add the meat to the dish.
❄️ How to Store Ham Stock
Homemade ham stock should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator once it has cooled completely. It should be used within 1 week, or ideally within 3-4 days. After being refrigerated, you may notice a gelatinous layer forming on the top of the stock, this is normal. The collagen breaks down while cooking and becomes gelatin, so it forms that layer when cold. Feel free to skim that off while cold and before using it if you wish.
For longer storage, ham stock can be frozen for 3 months. If freezing in a canning jar, leave an inch of headspace to allow for expansion as it freezes. You can also use other containers or freezer bags to make 1-2 cup portions, or other premeasured amounts for recipes you plan on using it in.
📋 Recipe
Homemade Ham Stock
Ingredients
- 36 ounce leftover ham bone, or 2 ham hocks
- 1 large yellow , roughly chopped
- 2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
- 2 large carrots, roughly chopped
- 4-5 cloves garlic, unpeeled and smashed
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 5-6 sprigs fresh parsley
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 16 cups water
Directions
- If you use fresh vegetables, start by rough chopping 1 large yellow onion, 2 carrots, and 2 ribs of celery into large chunks. No need to peel the carrots and you can use celery with leaves and all. Simply smash 4-5 garlic cloves and you can leave the skin on. Toss everything into a large stock pot or Dutch-oven.
- Place the ham bone on top of the veggies and add enough water to cover everything, at least 16 cups if you can fit it all in your pot. If using a frozen ham bone, you don’t have to thaw it first.
- Toss 1 teaspoon of black peppercorns, 4-5 sprigs of fresh parsley, 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, and 1 bay leaf into the pot and begin heating it over medium high heat. Bring it to a low boil, then cover the pot and reduce heat to medium low.
- Continue to simmer at a low heat for 3-4 hours, occasionally skimming the surface to remove any scum that forms. Give it a stir occasionally also, just to keep any vegetables from sticking to the bottom and burning. If the water seems like it is evaporating too quickly, add some more water and lower the temperature slightly.
- Once reduced and finished cooking, turn off the heat and you can remove some of the larger pieces with tongs. Carefully pour the remaining stock through a fine mesh strainer into another pot. You can repeat this process 1-2 times more and/or strain through a cheesecloth if you want a very clear stock.
- Portion the stock into canning jars and allow it to cool completely before refrigerating. You’re now ready to use it for any other recipe you would like.
Heidi says
Yummy