Homemade chicken stock/ broth for soup?!
Now, I have to say, my mom makes a pretty mean chicken broth. It is more flavorful than any other I've had and she doesn't even use bouillon. Just the chicken and stock vegetables and salt. But it never turns gelatinous in the fridge. If this is Alton's indicator for a good stock then I'd beg to differ, but maybe I misunderstood the segment.
Anyway, so my question is when you make stock does it turn gelatinous when refrigerated? If so, what do you think you do that makes it turn that way? And is that *really* the proper thing to look for?
Thanks for your help.
Answers: I once was watching an Good Eats show once where Alton was making chicken stock. He said the sign that the stock was made properly was if it turns gelatinous when refrigerated (not the fat on top, the stock broth itself). My mom and I were trying to figure out how exactly one accomplishes this.
Now, I have to say, my mom makes a pretty mean chicken broth. It is more flavorful than any other I've had and she doesn't even use bouillon. Just the chicken and stock vegetables and salt. But it never turns gelatinous in the fridge. If this is Alton's indicator for a good stock then I'd beg to differ, but maybe I misunderstood the segment.
Anyway, so my question is when you make stock does it turn gelatinous when refrigerated? If so, what do you think you do that makes it turn that way? And is that *really* the proper thing to look for?
Thanks for your help.
I myself swear by Alton Brown, every recipe I have ever tried from his show turned out to be a sure-fire bet, and a crowd-pleaser to boot. I would rewatch the episode (try searching for it on youtube) and try it the way he directs you to. I have successfully used his stock recipe, tho I couldn't recite it off the top of my head, and it does come out gelatinous if you do it right. It has something to do with the right amount of water, the heat level, the thickness of the bottom of the stockpot, the amount of time simmered, proper immersion of chicken parts and veggies etc... all having to be right to make it come out the way he describes.
By the way, that gelatinous stuff is called collagen (not in the same form as the stuff ppl inject into their lips, but of the same chemical family). Yes, you want it to be gelatinous; when someone drinks chicken soup for a cure of the common cold or any other sickness, it is mainly this collagen that boosts the immune system (and it sure doesn't hurt the texture of said soup!). In the episode, he explains that this collagen comes from the bones when simmered low and slow (it does not happen if you heat the stock water too quickly). You can find his instructions on foodtv.com also, if you can't find the episode in question.
Mine does, I think it has to do with the amount of water. There is probably a layer on top that can be skimmed off.
the geletain comes from the connective tissue in the animal, joints etc, when cooked for a period of time theses geletains are broken down and released into the liquid. when chilled they become jelld again.
Sorry not exactly answering it - but I found a recipe for stock made in the slow cooker today and it sounded like the bones themselves, if you cook the stock for long enough, boil down and become gelatinous, thickening the stock. This might be what he meant?
I attach the link - have a read through the recipe reviews as different people had different experiences. BUT I think of good stock as being thick, not necessarily gelatinous as such.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chicken-Bro...
It won't get the gelatin unless bones are used in the stock. If there is no gelatin, it's chicken broth, not stock. As far as "proper" I think that totally depends on your taste. If you love the broth your mom makes, who is anyone else to tell you it's wrong. However, if you want to try a stock, just make sure to stew the whole chicken, simmering low and slow with the other ingredients she would normally use. If she already uses a whole chicken, it could simply be that she's using more water than Alton.