Frozen chicken stock is useful in many cooking situations.
Ingredients:Each time you cut up a chicken, save the bones, skin, scraps of meat, neck, heart, etc. Freeze these in a plastic bag (first breaking up the larger pieces with a cleaver, if possible) and save them for when it's time to make stock.
Place the chicken scraps in a gallon or more of cold water in a stock pot, Start heating the water. Add the remaining ingredients. I usually put all of these in, if available. Once the liquid starts to boil turn it down and simmer covered. Many recipes say to skim off the nasty foam that collects at the top but it seems to go away on its own after a while. Three hours later throw away the bones and the overcooked veggies, strain the broth through a piece of cloth, and then cool off the stock as rapidly as is practical (placing the stock pot in a snowbank works well). Freeze the stock in containers of different sizes so you'll always have the right amount available.
To make chicken noodle soup: Start heating two or three quarts of stock in an appropriately-sized saucepan. Heat some olive oil in a skillet and brown pieces of chicken totalling one pound. Cut the cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces. Add more oil, if necessary, and fry half an onion for a few minutes before adding three chopped carrots and a chopped stalk of celery. A minute or two later, when the onion is translucent, add the vegetable mixture to the stock along with the meat. Simmer only until the carrots and celery are tender -- 15 minutes or so. Add chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Serve over cooked wide egg noodles.
To make chicken rice soup: Start heating two or three quarts of stick in an appropriately-sized saucepan. Add a cup or so of uncooked brown rice and simmer for 20 minutes. Follow the above directions for chicken meat and vegetables, and then add these to the stock and rice. It's done when the veggies and rice are tender.
Last modified: Sun Feb 13 15:15:36 2000
regehr@cs.utah.edu