Chicken Stock for the Soul

They say you shouldn't cook when you are upset.

To an extent I can see where they are coming from and why they would say that. When you cook your mixing, stirring, and creating energies. Energies that manifest in a tangible experience for all the senses, and is in fact meant to be consumed by the body. Your body is your temple, so you don't want to poison it with bad energies or bad food.

However, if the act of creating (in this case cooking) can pull you up and out of a mood. I can disconnect, focus on the ingredients, focus on the meal, comforted by the smells, and let the rest go. Of course it helps that I have been programmed to be comforted by food lol. A close friend told me recently that food was my porn and that might be the case.

So here we are today in the early days of October. There is much on the plate to do, and much that hasn't manifested that I was trying to. It just so happens that today is one of "those" days. But we can't stay down, can we? Certainly not, and in order to rally for the betterment of the day (and for my love's sake as I don't imagine coming home to a depressed person isn't pleasant after a full day of work). This is where we cue the kitchen!

Ahh...just now the smell has hit me and I can already feel myself lightening. In our house, cooking has become a staple. The more ways I can find to make things tasty the better. This has meant parting ways with a lot of the standard methods of cooking that my mother used lol, things in packets/boxes/bag pre made are fairly scarce here. Out with the packets of taco seasoning, and enchilada sauce. Out with the hamburger helper, and canned soups.

And out with canned chicken stock. (ok not completely I do have cans of chicken stock, just in case!)

A few nights ago I made us a herb roasted chicken from The Pioneer Woman's blog. A delicious and EASY recipe (so much yum). And as per usual once we had eaten our fill of chicken and had our chicken salad sandwiches, I saved the little carcass to make delicious homemade chicken stock. You could also save chicken bones from other recipes and freeze them till you have enough.

• 1 chicken carcass (approx. 3 lbs of chicken bones)
• 1 onion (rough chopped with skins on)
• 4 cloves of garlic (smashed with skins on)
• 3 stalks of celery (rough chopped leaves and all)
• 2 carrots (rough chopped)
• handful of parsely (or whatever fresh herb you have)
• pinch of tarragon (or whatever dried herb you want)
• 3 bay leaves
• salt and pepper to taste

Put all ingredients (except the salt and pepper, that goes in last) into a large stockpot and cover with water and bring to boil. Once it's boiling turn the heat down to a simmer, cover and let simmer for 2-3 hrs.

Enjoy the smell. I know I am. *inhales deeply* It's just a happy smell. The parsley and the chicken, just good stuff.

Once your house smells divine, you've had a snack because you got hungry, and the stock has simmered for hours and has reduced by half. Take out the carcass the big pieces etc. If you have lots of big pots this is easier to do, by pouring the liquid thru a colander into another pot. But you can just fish them out if you don't want to mess another pot. Once all the big chunks have been removed, you need to strain it further with a small mesh or cheese cloth. Cover freshly strained liquid and let sit in the refrigerator for several hours or over night.

Letting it sit will allow the fat to the rise to the top and congeal allowing you to scrape it off. You don't need to get rid of ALL of it, but most so your stock isn't greasy. Once the fat has been removed you can store the stock in whatever freezer friendly container you wish. I will be experimenting with storing them in ice cube trays this time round. The theory is to make it easier to use the stock in dishes instead of having to thaw out large chunks. So we'll see. :)

I'm feeling a little better, I think it's about time for that snack lol.

Till next time.