Broth

In Grandma Lois style, I've prepared (or at least started to prepare) my broth for matzo ball soup.

Passover begins March 30th.

I didn't have this crazy desire to be overly prepared way too early, I just happened to have the leftovers from last night's chicken. (Which, for the record, was fantastic.)

This is very similar to my last chicken broth recipe (which I haven't put up here yet, and may or may not...), only the bones have been cooked in the crock, and not roasted, since my oven remains very, very broken.

Whenever you have rotisserie chicken from the store, make a chicken, or have leftover roasted chicken you just don't think will be eaten up in time, put it in your freezer in a container. Save the backbones and necks. You *can* add giblets in here, but I prefer to use those for gravy, or a special treat for the kitties. Lately, the kitties lack of positive behavior has resulted in more gravy for us. Sadly, they know when it is fresh chicken night, and sit in the kitchen crying for giblets. What a hot mess. I digress.

You will need:

A large pot. I used a 7 qt I believe, but I've used giant pots before. Just get more bones.
A chicken carcass, skins, some necks, backs, pieces, or, if you don't have any (or really want a rich flavor) buy some bone-in skin-on chicken winglets or thighs. You can buy any of these from a butcher, and sometimes the grocery store. Sometimes they will even save it for you if you ask nicely. I try to get about 1 chicken worth of bones per 7 quarts of water.
Salt. Put 1/2 TBS in to start, then go from there once you near the end.
Other seasonings you like. I almost always use thyme and savory with chicken. I also like bay leaf, garlic, and/or rosemary. It all depends on what you are going for. If you have doubts, smell your spices and think "is this what I want it to taste like?"
Water. Lots of water.
An onion, quartered, skin on.
5-7 carrots, broken into 2-3 pieces, skin on
A bunch of celery (small bunch), roughly chopped. If you have a huge bunch, use the middle before the outside.
Cheesecloth

Yesterday, I used the leftover "roasted" (crocked) veggies instead of new ones.
I also started this stock using the drippings from the crock. This makes it wonderful.

Stick everything in a pot, fill with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and let it simmer for a few hours. The more it simmers, the more concentrated it will be. I personally like broth more concentrated. You can always add more water in later.

Once the broth has reached the concentrate you like, strain the chicken and herb bits out using the cheese cloth. (This is how you get very clear broth.)

Set broth in the refrigerator overnight. When you return in the morning, the fat will be settled on the top. Skim this off.
You can also use a fat skimmer thing to get this off if you are in a hurry. My fat skimmer thing only holds 2 cups of liquid, and I get quite impatient with it. Both methods achieve the same goal.


... and you have chicken broth! Now you can put in it what you want!