Easy Homemade Chicken Stock is a perfect recipe for so many different things and it’s one recipe that you’ll keep close by for the rest of your life. Once you know how to make chicken stock, there’s no limit to the tasty soups and recipes in your future.
Making slow cooker chicken stock is a great way to use up leftover chicken bones, stretch your pennies and get a flavorful rich broth with very minimal effort.
This chicken stock recipe needs a very minimal investment in energy and ingredients and just requires a little patience as it slow cooks to perfection.
If you can wait a few hours you can find the best chicken stock from carcass chicken that you’ve ever had, making it well worth it in the end.
What is Chicken Stock?
Chicken stock is a flavorful broth made from soaking cooked chicken bones with vegetables, water, and added ingredients (usually herbs or vinegar) for a flavorful base that will work well in all kinds of soups and stews.
The end results are comforting, flavorful, and delicious. While you can simply go out and buy a carton or can of chicken stock there’s nothing that can compete with the taste of homemade.
Ingredients you’ll need for Chicken Stock
- Chicken thighs
- Chicken carcasses
- Leek
- Celery sticks
- Turnip
- Onion
- Parsnip
- Bay leaves
- Fresh Thyme
- Salt
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
How to Make Homemade Chicken Stock
Wash and prepare the vegetables by cutting them into small pieces, but since they won’t be eaten you don’t need to make the pieces bite-sized.
Add your chicken and vegetables to the slow cooker.
Add in the bay leaves, thyme, and salt.
Pour in enough water to cover the chicken and veggies well.
Place the lid on and cook for 6-8 hours on low heat.
Once cooked, strain the chunks from the stock by pouring the liquid through a fine-mesh strainer.
Let cool and use as desired or store for later.
Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe Tips
This basic recipe for chicken stock makes up to 2 liters of chicken stock, but it will depend on how big your pot is. A larger pot will mean that you can make more stock.
We recommend using skin-on chicken for the flavor, but you can also do it with skinless chicken.
Of course, the remaining chicken can be shredded and used in soups or even salads. Just make sure to remove any tiny bone fragments as sometimes the bones break.
Chicken Stock vs Broth
What is the difference between chicken stock and chicken broth? Is chicken stock the same as chicken broth? The answer is no, they are two different but very similar things.
Chicken stock is made from soaking the cooked bones and veggies for a deeper flavor profile and richness, whereas chicken broth is made from the meat and bones giving it a lighter flavor profile.
Both can be used interchangeably in recipes and both are delicious but you will notice more flavor coming from the use of chicken stock as opposed to chicken broth.
These are very convenient ingredients to have on hand to make all kinds of soups and stews, but also useful to make dishes like risotto. I like to make a big batch and freeze it in small portions so I can have homemade chicken stock whenever I need it.
What To Do With Chicken Stock
If you’re looking for recipes with chicken stock as an added ingredient then you are in luck because I have several to share including Chicken Florentine Soup, Easy 20 Minute Chicken Pho, Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup, and Baked Chicken with Orzo.
Remember that you can always use chicken stock in recipes requesting chicken broth so there are truly unlimited possibilities out there for this homemade stock. Making chicken soup from carcass stock is fabulous but don’t feel limited to just soups.
FAQs
How long is homemade chicken stock good for?
Chicken stock can be stored in the fridge in air-tight containers for up to a week. It can be frozen for up to 6 months. Please note that when it gets cold it can turn into a gel-like texture, that’s not fat but the collagen from the bones. This only means we’ve extracted all the goodness from the ingredients, once it’s heated it turns liquid again.
Can I cook my chicken stock on high heat?
Yes, you could do this to make the process faster but you should note that by cooking the stock over high heat you will have more particles and pieces to strain through the mesh strainer when finished. This is because the high heat will cause the bones and other ingredients to break into tinier pieces and that could potentially compromise the quality of your stock.
Is homemade chicken stock healthy?
Yes, this is a very healthy version of the storebought stuff and better for you too because you can control the ingredients and because there is no salt added meaning you can adjust the salt to your own tastes in recipes and/or keep it a part of a healthy low sodium diet.
Looking for more? Check out these other great slow cooker recipes you’re sure to enjoy:
- Beef Stew Recipe
- How To Make Pork and Sauerkraut (Slow Cooker)
- Mulled Wine Recipe With Slow Cooker and Stove-Top Directions
- Meat Sauce
- Vegetable Beef Soup
- Mocha Chai Tea Latte
Easy Homemade Chicken Stock
Classic basic chicken stock, perfect to make all kinds of soups and stews. Comforting, flavorful and delicious.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken thighs (skin and bones in)
- 1 or 2 chicken carcass (depending on the size)
- 1 leek
- 4/5 celery sticks
- 1 turnip
- 1 onion
- 1 parsnip
- 2 bay leaves
- 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 2-3 teaspoons salt (to taste)
Instructions
- Start by prepping the vegetables by washing them and cutting them in small pieces. There’s no need to cut them very small.
- Add the chicken and vegetables to the slow cooker.
- Add the bay leaves, thyme and salt and cover with enough water.
- Let cook for 6-8 hours on low.
- Once it has cooked, strain it with a fine mesh strainer.
- Store.
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