I assumed Monday’s Local Food Connection conference in Medford would reveal some new twist in the region’s food scene.
Running into Suzi Ginet of Plaisance Ranch, however, reinforced a tried-and-true technique of thrifty and health-conscious cooks.
Customers of her family’s Williams ranch often want bones from their certified organic beef cattle strictly with the goal of making stock. It’s nice to know people are asking for those bits, often wasted, because they’re chock full of nutrition. One ranch customer swears by bone broth for preventing colds, Ginet said.
Suddenly, all I wanted for dinner was a bowl of steaming-hot lamb stock from the homemade batches in my freezer. My throat had felt a little sore all day, and the weekend had definitely been an overindulgence of pasta, pizza and other carb-laden meals. What I needed was some marrow.
I had a similar experience about a month before after leaving a late-evening lecture at Ashland Food Co-op on the Weston A. Price diet. Read more about this whole-foods approach with its emphasis on saturated animal fats in the current issue of Oregon Healthy Living.
The research behind the diet only made my homemade turkey stock all the more attractive. I simply heated up a cupful, spiked it with dried wakame seaweed and drank it before bed.
That’s the funny thing about a food as rich and wholesome as homemade stock. You don’t need anything but this liquid to leave the table feeling full. In addition to being far less flavorful, commercially made stock simply can’t deliver on that front.
And of course, having a supply of stock ready to go makes meal planning that much easier. Use it in quick-cooking soups like udon (as I did last night) or chicken noodle, to make risotto or simply steam a whole grain or to exponentially increase the flavor of a pan sauce.
A 2008 column by Jan Roberts-Dominguez covered the process of making chicken stock, but stock can be based on any animal bones. I freeze the large bones removed when we butterfly legs of lamb to later simmer into stock, but I also ask the butcher handling my 4-H lamb every year to package up the leftover bones for me. It’s a shame the butchers I’ve encountered don’t ask if customers want the bones when taking cutting instructions, particularly considering all the buzz these days around using the whole animal.
Often an entire poultry carcass becomes the base for stock, but it’s just as easy to save up assorted parts and pieces in the freezer over time until there’s enough to fill the stock pot. Jan advocates this approach, as well as sauteing the poultry pieces before adding water to the pot.
Other cooks favor roasting first. The Detroit Free Press recently covered that process, which follows, along with the paper’s test-kitchen recipe for chicken tortilla soup.
Spread out the chicken pieces along with a quartered onion on a sided baking sheet. Place in a preheated 350-degree oven and roast about 45 minutes or so until the pieces are nicely browned. Roasting the chicken pieces gives the stock a rich and hearty flavor.
Remove from the oven and place the chicken and onion in a large stock pot. Add water to cover and bring just to a high simmer, not a boil, over medium heat. Then reduce the heat to a simmer, occasionally skimming off any foam that rises to the top. Never bring it to a boil, or the stock or broth will become cloudy.
Stock can be frozen in convenient portions. Pour the mixture into ice-cube trays or muffin tins and freeze. Once frozen, pop out the cubes and store them in freezer bags. To easily defat the stock, place in a bowl in the freezer for about 45 minutes. The fat will solidify at the top, and you can spoon it off.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 pound cooked, shredded chicken
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon favorite all-purpose seasoning, or to taste
1 teaspoon cumin, optional
2 (14.5-ounce) cans no-salt -added tomatoes
6 cups homemade chicken stock (may substitute canned, low-sodium, fat-free chicken broth)
8 corn tortillas, cut into strips
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup shredded Mexican-blend cheese, for garnish
In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the garlic and saute 1 minute or until fragrant; do not allow garlic to brown. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes.
Add the cooked chicken and sprinkle it with the chili powder, all-purpose seasoning and cumin. Stir and cook 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and the stock. Bring just to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 F. Place the tortilla strips on a baking sheet with sides and drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with the salt and black pepper. Place in oven and bake 10 to 12 minutes or until strips are crisp. Remove from oven.
Taste and adjust seasonings for soup if needed. Ladle into bowls and serve topped with tortilla strips and a sprinkling of the shredded cheese.
Makes 12 cups.
