How to Make Beef Stock
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Category
Main Dish
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Cusine
American
What do you need?
How to make?
Ingredients
4-5 pounds meaty beef stock bones , including some knuckle bones if possible, cut to expose the center marrow, and include at least a couple veal bones if you can, for their gelatin
1 pound of stew meat and/or beef scraps, cut into 2-inch chunks
Olive oil
1-2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
1-2 large carrots, cut into 1-2 inch segments
Handful of celery tops, or 1 large celery rib, cut into 1 inch segments
2-3 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
Handful of parsley, stems and leaves
1-2 bay leaves
10 peppercorns
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Rub a little olive oil over the stew meat pieces, carrots, and onions. Place stock bones, stew meat or beef scraps, carrots and onions in a large, shallow roasting pan.
Roast in oven for about 45 minutes, turning the bones and meat pieces half-way through the cooking, until nicely browned. If bones begin to char at all during this cooking process, lower the heat. They should brown, not burn.
When the bones and meat are nicely browned, remove them and the vegetables and place them in a large stock pot.
Place the roasting pan on the stove-top on low heat , pour 1/2 cup to a cup of hot water over the pan and use a metal spatula to scrape up all of the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.
Pour the browned bits and water into the stock pot.
Add celery tops, garlic, parsley, bay leaves, and peppercorns to the stock pot.
Fill the stock pot with cold water, to 1 to 2 inches over the top of the bones. Put the heat on high and bring the pot to a low simmer and then reduce the heat to low.
If you have a candy or meat thermometer, the temperature of the water should be between 180 degrees and 200 degrees F . The stock should be at a bare simmer, just a bubble or two coming up here and there.
Cover the pot loosely and let simmer low and slow for 3-6 hours.
Do not stir the stock while cooking. Stirring will mix the fats in with the stock, clouding up the stock.
As the stock cooks, fat will be released from the bone marrow and stew meat and rise to the top. From time to time check in on the stock and use a large metal spoon to scoop away the fat and any scum that rises to the surface.
use a slotted spoon or spider ladle to gently remove the bones and vegetables from the pot .
Line another large pot with a fine mesh sieve, covered with a couple layers of cheesecloth if you have it.
Pour the stock through the sieve to strain it of remaining solids.
Let cool to room temperature then chill in the refrigerator.
One the stock has chilled, any fat remaining will have risen to the top and solidified. The fat forms a protective layer against bacteria while the stock is in the refrigerator. If you plan to freeze the stock however, remove and discard the fat, pour the stock into a jar or plastic container. Leave an inch head room from the top of the stock to the top of the jar, so that as the stock freezes and expands, it will not break the container.