How to Make Homemade Chicken Broth

My Polish grandma in Wisconsin used to raise her own chickens. We used to call her “grandma on the farm” even though her days of living on a working farm were far in the past. I guess we called her that to distinguish her from all other grandmas in the growing family. The last time I saw her was in the mid-60’s. She was the master of chicken noodle soup and fresh baked bread.  I’m making a pot of chicken broth right now and the aroma reminds me of her.

I make my broth with simple ingredients. Depending upon what I’m going to be using the broth for later, I’ll season it then with custom spices and herbs. Typically I only use the broth for soup.

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken about 5 to 5-1/2 lbs. Cut up and thoroughly washed to get all the gross junk out of the inside. Be sure to dig out the red organs on either side of the spine. Those are the kidneys. The cleaner your chicken, the clearer your broth.
• 2 stalks of celery, snapped into thirds
• 2 fresh carrots, snapped into thirds
• 4-5 stalks of curly parsley
• 2 whole Allspice (koobubas, grandma used to call them)
• 1/4 – 1/2 tsp salt

I have a huge 12 qt stock pot that I make my broth in, but I despise using it because it’s too big to wrangle, doesn’t fit in the dishwasher and it’s a pain digging out all the chicken meat and bones once the broth is finished. Recently I discovered pasta pots. They have a seperate pasta strainer that fits inside the pot. That insert is pure genius. No more draining food into a colander. Just lift out the insert with all its contents and boom, you’re done.

So I bought one for making chicken broth and that’s what’s simmering on the stove right now.

Cooking instructions

• Place the pasta strainer in the pot.
• Place vegetables and seasonings in first.
• Arrange cut up chicken on top of vegetables. Try to create only a single layer of meat. Don’t stack pieces unless your pasta pot is on the narrow and tall side.
• Add cold water to barely cover the chicken.
• Bring to boil then reduce to a slow simmer.
• Simmer for about 2-1/2 to 3 hrs. Sample the broth towards the end of the cooking time to check for flavor intensity. Simmer longer if necessary.
• When done, carefully lift out the strainer, let it drip a bit into the pot, then place it on a deep plate or in a bowl.
• Time to strain the broth. Get another pot, or several if the pots are small, and place a fine mesh strainer over the pot and pour the broth thru the strainer to remove any residual bits.
• Rinse out the pasta pot and return the strained broth to the pot.

Cooling the Broth

Fill the sink or a very large bowl with ice cubes and cold water and place the pasta pot in the water to cool down. You make have to drain the water and add more ice. When the broth reaches room temp, put it in the fridge and let it sit overnight. The next day remove the layer of hardened fat from the top. You should be left with wiggly “chicken jello”, the collagey goodness.

Freezing Broth

I freeze my broth in 8 oz containers. Leave a good 1/2″ to 3/4″ of room at the top for expansion or the lids will crack.

Using the Broth

I typically use my broth for chicken noodle soup. I’ll either make homemade noodles with a pasta maker, quick little egg drop dumplings or Chinese noodles. If using Chinese noodles, about 1/2 way thru their cooking process, I throw in some chopped up baby bok choy. Of course, you can also use some of it in your chicken soup.

Using the Chicken

The cooked chicken is going to be super soft. What I do is debone it and portion it out into vacuum bags and freeze it. I use it for tacos, enchiladas, chicken salad or when I’m feeling wicked, I substitute it for the tuna in Tuna Helper. You can also use it for chicken pot pie or your own homemade tuna chicken casserole.