Scrap stock (delicious broth from kitchen scraps)

Did you know you can save up food scraps and make a killer broth out of them? We’ve made a habit out of keeping a freezer bag for scraps we would otherwise throw out: bones, shells, carrot peels, celery butts, onion skins and pieces, and herb stems. These are all the ingredients needed to make a delicious stock. Obviously, stock tastes like what you put in it. You can mix it up as much as you want or try to stick with a theme, such as seafood stock with shrimp shells, fish bones, and complimentary herb stems. Or you could take a traditional chicken, carrot, celery, onion, and herbs approach. The finished stock is tasty enough to drink hot and seasoned with salt and pepper. You can also use it as a base for miso soup or other kinds of soup, or use in any recipe that calls for stock.

Making a stock simply consists of cooking the scraps in water for 6-12 hours and then straining. You can keep it in the fridge to use right away or stash it in the freezer for later. If you have a fatty stock, you can scrape the fat off the surface after it has cooled. Fat will float and congeal at the top. The fattiness will depend on what what’s in your scraps. Don’t confuse fat with gel though. Stock made with a lot of bones and cooked a long time will have the texture of gel when cooled. This is a good thing. It is the collagen from the bones that produces this texture, which is very good for you.

Scrap stock
Recipe by Nathan Clark, modified from Sally Fallon’s recipe in Nourishing Traditions
 
Ingredients
 
A few cups to a pot full of vegetable and/or meat scraps, such as chicken bones, chicken feet, beef bones, seafood shells, onion skins and pieces, herb stems, carrot peels, and celery butts
Enough filtered water to cover the scraps
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar with the mother ("with the mother" means it is unpasteurized and unfiltered, so still has the mother culture inside the vinegar. Bragg's is one maker.)
 
Instructions
 
Put your scraps in a large pot, cover with cold water, and stir in the apple cider vinegar. Let soak for 30 minutes to an hour. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 6-12 hours, covered. Skim foamy scum off the surface a few times as it cooks. If needed, add a little water to keep the liquid level over the solids. The longer you cook it, the richer and thicker it will be. Remove from heat and cool a little. Strain through a colander. Refrigerate or freeze. It will keep in the fridge for about 3 days or in the freezer at least a few months.