Chicken Stock

Chicken Stock is the base for almost every soup I make.  I will sometime use chicken stock from the store, but it is really easy and tasty to make a very flavorful chicken soup base.

Chicken Stock

Ingredients:
5 pound chicken – I tend to use the chicken that I will use in a soup, so thighs work great
Big swirl of Olive oil
14 oz carrots
14 oz celery
8 cups water
5 cloves garlic
1 TBS Thyme
1 TBS Oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

optional:
1 TBS Hot Hungarian Paprika
Ginger to taste

Directions:
Place Chicken and a big swirl of Olive oil in a pot, salt and pepper chicken and start browning.  I leave the skin on the thighs, I want the fat and skin browned for flavor.  Brown/cook chicken for about 15-20 minutes, the chicken will release liquid because I am not searing it, I am just cooking it and browning it a little.  Add carrots, celery, onions, and garlic.  Mix together and let cook a little longer, about 20-25 minutes at this point.  Then add 8 cups of water and the thyme, paprika, and oregano.  Cook for 2 hours on med to low.  As in all my recipes I recommend tasting and adjusting as you need.  I don’t know if my oregano is fresher, older, stronger, or weaker, than yours, so taste things along the way and adjust as needed.  You have permission to experiment, in fact it’s a requirement!
If you want clear stock, remove all the veggies, bay leaf, and chicken.  Continue to cook down, to intensify the flavor.  You want to be left with about 8 cups of clear stock.  It’s sort of funny, you start out with 8 cups water, but with all the ingredients you end up with about the same and all the flavor or the carrots, celery, spices and chicken left in that water.  Even with some cooking down, I seem to be at 8 cups.  Which for me is perfect, because that’s about how much stock I need for most of my soup recipes.

My favorite adaptation to this recipe:  Remove only the chicken, pull out the bay leaf, and then immersion blend all the veggies into the soup base.  This is great if you’re making a creamed soup or stockier/heavier soup.

Save Chicken, debone, and use in recipes as desired.

 

Beef Stew with Kale

So, it’s cooling off here in the Pacific Northwest.  And, that means it’s time for stews and soups.   I just made a beef stew with kale and it’s a one pot wonder!  I love things that can build on themselves in one pot, less to clean up and the flavors seem more interesting.

Beef Stew with Kale

3 lbs grass fed beef cut into cubes
2 large onions chopped
5 stalks celery chopped
1 Bell pepper chopped (Red or Yellow)
Eye Ball Olive oil, I use a big swirl of olive oil
1 lb carrots chopped
2 lbs small potatoes – whole
1 lb mushrooms – quartered, unless small
1 med bunch of Kale chopped
2 TBS Thyme
2 TBS Oregano
1 TBS Granulated Garlic
5 Cloves fresh Garlic chopped
2 c Red Wine
2 c Beef Stock
1 can (6 oz) Tomato Paste
Salt and Pepper

I can’t emphasize enough that I cook by taste, so all the amount are flexible, if you like more garlic or less, please take care of yourself.

I use a large cast iron dutch oven, as I think it holds heat well and it’s pretty and I bought it already and have to use it in order to keep it.

Add chopped onion, chopped celery, bell pepper and beef to pot, add olive oil and sauté.   Let this sauté for about 20 minutes, you wants some carmelization.  Add Garlic (fresh and granulated), Thyme, and Oregano, stir.  Let cook about another 10 minutes.  This is all rough time frames, since this stew is not about precision, its about building flavors, so more time is fine.  I usually just use the time that it takes to chop the next round of ingredients. Let’s not get to crazy about the times.  I think more importantly, you watch your temperature, not so hot that things are burning, but hot enough to sauté.  I just changed to a electric stove (I could write some things about that, but I won’t) and my temp is in the 7 range for this part.

Add Carrots and potatoes to the pot.  Add wine and beef stock to a measuring cup and mix in the tomato paste.  Pour the stock/wine/tomato over ingredients in the pot.  Turn temperature  down to about the 5 on the stovetop and not quite boil but more than simmer for about 30 minutes.   Then add the mushrooms and Kale.  Turn down again and let simmer on low (about a 2 on my stove) for about 4 hours or more.  Serve in bowls.  8 very big servings.  Enjoy.