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Preview: Chicken Brothby Tony M in Rouxbe Videos This basic recipe creates a flavorful liquid and cooked chicken which can be applied to many dishes; a 2 for 1 deal.
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Step 1: Making the Broth
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To make the broth, rinse the chicken and place into a large pot. Cover with cold water and bring to a simmer over medium heat, while you prepare the vegetables (mirepoix). Roughly chop the celery, onions, carrots and the white and light green part of the leek. Skim the broth, and then add the mirepoix and salt to the pot. Bring everything back to a gentle simmer and let cook for about 30-45 minutes, skimming the surface as needed. Just be sure to not let the broth come to a boil.
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Step 2: Checking the Broth
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Once the broth has cooked for about 30-45 minutes, check the water level, adding more cold water to cover, if needed. Then add the bouquet garni, which consists of the thyme, parsley, bay leaf and peppercorns. If the chicken floats out of the broth, gently turn it over. Let simmer for another 20-30 minutes. |
Step 3: Finishing the Broth
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Once the broth has simmered for about an hour or so, remove the chicken and place it onto a plate. Let it cool slightly while you strain the broth. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat and take off the skin and any fat. This fully cooked chicken can be use in many other dishes such as salads, quesadillas, and pot pies. Left behind is a healthy and flavorful broth that can also be used in many dishes. |
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Comments
When I take the chicken out, I let it cool just long enough for me to be able to strip the bird, then I put the carcass back in the pot and simmer all night. An hour and a half broth seems like it'd be rather thin.
Putting the carcass back into the broth is a good idea Joel. For other recipes where you might like to darken the broth, you could even roast the bones for 30 to 45 minutes to obtain some carmelization (brown color). Adding this back to your broth would yield a dark chicken broth.
However, there is a point in stock/broth making where you can no longer extract any further flavor from bones and mirepoix. You can simmer it overnight but you will only be increasing the flavor through reduction (and not extraction). In other words, you could strain after a couple of hours, then reduce to increase the flavor and you'd obtain the exact same results from cooking it all together overnight. The only danger in cooking overnight is that the vegetables may break down to the point where they actually start to cloud your broth/stock. Hope this makes sense.
Best and safer to simmer in a dutch oven in a low oven if you're going to do this overnight. Do it in a 250 F oven, with a lid slightly ajar, to prevent evaporation, and create the gentlest simmer possible (if fat, it will barely poach). This should result in a cloudless, very flavourful stock.
If you think using a whole chicken would cost a bit too much, you can use just thighs and legs. It won't taste quite the same but it'll be near enough.
Remember though, that you often make broths when you are going to use the meat off the bone in the final dish that the broth was made for. So you are not going to throw away or discard the meat.
You are right though, making broths with legs and thighs is a great idea.
Can a chicken broth and chicken stock be used interchangeably? Or does a stock give a better flavour due to longer simmering?
A broth is typically used when the whole meat used to make the broth, is re-incorporated back into the broth. See the Chicken Pot Pie recipe for an example.
Both will have good flavor. Some will argue that the stock may have a bit stronger flavor given the longer cooking times.