Making your own stock will make you appreciate how dull store-bought stock really is. makes even the simplest soup recipes into elaborate dishes. Note that chicken feet are used in this dish in place of bones. The outcome is a stock that has more flavor and richness than any bone stock I’ve ever tasted. However, when the stock is cooled below room temperature, the collagen from the foot turns it into gelatin. So when you open your refrigerator and discover chicken jelly, don’t freak out.
| Prep Time: | 1 hr |
| Cook Time: | 8 hrs 15 mins |
| Additional Time: | 4 hrs |
| Total Time: | 13 hrs 15 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 12 servings |
Ingredients
- 4 lbs chicken feet
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed
- 2 cups chopped white onion
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- ½ cup chopped celery
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 quarts water, or as needed
- 2 medium leeks
- ⅓ cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh marjoram
- 2 large bay leaves
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add chicken feet and boil for 10 minutes. This will soften them enough that you can chop off the claws from each paw. This opening is where the collagen melts out of which gives the stock its richness. Strain feet through a sieve, chop off claws, and set aside.
- Pour a layer of olive oil in the same pot and heat over medium-low heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook until softened and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute an additional 30 seconds. Add feet back to the pot and fill with water until about 2 inches of water stand above the highest feet in the pot.
- Discard dark green portions of the leeks or set aside for another use. Slice up the light green portions; each stalk should yield 7 to 8 slices. Add to the pot.
- Combine parsley, peppercorns, thyme, marjoram, bay leaves, and rosemary on top of a piece of cheesecloth. Tie cheesecloth up with twine into a spice bag, leaving a long string. Tie the end of the string to a pot handle (for easy retrieval later) and drop spice bag into the pot.
- Increase heat to high and bring stock to a rolling boil. Reduce temperature to low and simmer, without stirring, for about 8 hours, adding more water if level becomes too low.
- After 8 hours (or the next morning), drain the stock through a colander into another pot to remove large solids. Clean the first pot. Lay a piece of cheesecloth over a fine mesh strainer. Pour the stock through this setup and into the clean pot to remove any fine particles. Cool to room temperature.
- Cover and move to refrigerator to cool completely, 3 to 4 hours. Remove the layer of fat that will congeal on top of the stock with a slotted spoon. Taste and adjust salt level. Use within a few days or freeze.