Making CHICKEN EXTRACT at home:
Source of Recipe
David
Recipe Introduction
"...If you've never made your own extract, you may be surprised to
see that it is a very deep brown in color and bouncy-firm in texture
when cooled. You may also be surprised to know that this superior
stock is comparatively cheap. As you use your extract, you can bask
in a sense of virtuous economy as chicken backs cost very little,
like the few other ingredients...." (Heather speaking now...it goes
on and on a wee bit more with a lot of bragging encouragement to us
all to try it, so I will skip the fan fare and get to the recipe
List of Ingredients
Making CHICKEN EXTRACT at home: from David
6# to 6 1/2# chicken necks and backs, with any loose fat removed
7 quarts water, or enough to cover the chicken by 2 inches
3 medium carrots, scrubbed and sliced
1 medium-large onion, stuck with 2 cloves
1 rib celery, with leaves sliced
1 leek, roots and any discolored tops removed, split lengthwise and
washed thoroughly
3 sprigs parsley
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp dried thyme
Optional: (For serving separately: 1 whole 3# chicken)
Recipe
1. Rinse and drain the chicken parts and put them into a stock
pot. Add enough water to cover them by 2". Bring to a boil and
boil briskly, skimming off the foam as it rises, for 5 minutes or
until no more scum appears.
2. Add the carrots, onion, celery, leek, parsley, bay leaf, and
thyme and regulate the heat until the liquid simmers gently. Cook 3
to 4 hours or until they are very soft. Do not allow the pot to
boil.
3. Strain off the broth, pressing down the debris in the sieve to
extract all possible juices. Discard the solids. Skim the fat from
the broth and return the broth to the rinsed out pot.
4. Bring the stock to a simmer and let it simmer, uncovered, until
it has reduced by one-half. (If you wish to cook the extra whole
chicken in the broth, add it at this point and poach it until it is
done, about 45 minutes. Remove the chicken and set it aside for
another use/meal.)
5. Strain the broth again, this time through a sieve lined with
dampened cheesecloth. Rinse out the pot, return the broth, and
continue the reduction at a simmer, with the pot uncovered, skimming
from time to time. Note that the cooking and reduction need not be
a continuous process. At any point you may stop, let the stock
cool, uncovered, and resume the cooking when it is convenient.
Refrigerate the stock in warm weather or, in cool weather, if you're
holding it for more than 8 hours.
6. When the stock has been reduced to about 1 quart, strain it
again, either through a very fine sieve or a coarser sieve lined
with dampened doubled cheesecloth. Put it into a smaller pan (A
wide, shallow one is best) Resume the reduction, still at a steady
simmer. This is the point at which you must begin to watch the
cooking and stir the extract occasionally. Do not let it scorch.
Skim frequently to remove scum and fat from the top.
7. When the extract is thick enough to coat a metal spoon, pour it
into clean, dry jars. Cool it at room temperature, uncovered, then
cover the containers and refrigerate or freeze the extract. If
frozen, scoop out with a hot spoon as needed. STOCK IN A SLOW
COOKER: We think that making stock in a slow cooker is a great time
and fuss-saver whenever the supply of bones and meat or poultry
trimmings in the freezer reaches crockpot size. It is virtually
impossible to achieve anything but a fine stock with a cooker set on
low.
Heather again speaking: I have made this several times, each time
without having at hand every ingredient in the original list. So do
not worry if you have no leeks or thyme or such. You will do just
fine.
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