Making Nourishing Traditions Style Chicken Stock
January 22, 2010 By 9 Comments
After I cook a whole chicken and pull off the meat as our homemade organic lunchmeat, I put everything else back in the pot that I cooked the chicken in. In goes the skin, bones, gristle, doesn’t it look nice? Then I add a tablespoon or so of apple cider vinegar and fill the pot to within a couple inches of the top with filtered water. I used to do all this in the crockpot, but I bought a nice big 8 quart stockpot
Chicken vertebrae (I think). I think it would be easier for children to learn lessons such as anatomy and physiology if they were exposed to such on a weekly basis, don’t you?
I bring the chicken parts/water/apple cider vinegar (I’ve been using Bragg’s
brand from the health food store) to the pot, I bring up to a boil, then lower down to a simmer and simmer uncovered for 12+ hours, usually overnight.
brand from the health food store) to the pot, I bring up to a boil, then lower down to a simmer and simmer uncovered for 12+ hours, usually overnight. 
Chicken stock is said to have many health benefits, including being full of calcium (I tried explaining this to the pediatrician a few months back… didn’t go well. I sometimes forget that not everyone is as excited about real foods as I am) and other good things that are pulled out of the bones. Above is a post-broth chicken bone.
See how easy it crumbles when I pinch it? Calcium was taken out of the bone and put into the broth for us to drink and use in soups.
See, this is easy.
If you’re a pro at this and looking for something more, check out Nourished Kitchen’s Chicken Feet Stock. I haven’t gotten there yet, there’s plenty of real food areas that I’m still working my way up to.
And follow In Word Adorning’s directions for adding herbs for immune boosting properties.
What do you use chicken stock for?
- It’s great in soups
- It adds flavor and nutrition when cooked with rice
- Add real sea salt for another nutrient boost
A part of Fight Back Fridays at Food Renegade
Thanks for a great blog! Anything that I can find having to do with Natural Health and Holistic Nutrition is of utmost interest to me and my family! Thank you!!!!
Hi Cara, Just found your blog, making chicken stock and don’t have my Nourishing Traditions cookbook handy (we just moved.) Thank you for the directions. I’m am also excited about real foods and looking forward to reading your blog.
MMM, love homemade stock. I made some beef stock over night last night. I really don’t have any access to affordable free range chickens, but we do buy a 1/2 grass fed beef. I requested all the bones as possible. I’m going to reuse the bones too (except for one I gave to the dog, she’s in “heaven” now). I saw the chicken bags on US Wellness meats, but I don’t know if I can fork up the cash for them. Do you always use free range chickens or do you compromise and get conventional? I do buy a whole chicken that advertises “no antibiotics, no hormones, vegetarian fed”. It’s not free range by any means, but better than the common conventional chicken.
I do buy organic chicken from Costco too, I can’t always afford the good free range ones either.
don’t forget to skim the broth as the it comes to a boil.
Prior to turning on the flame, let the pot sit with the ingredients in cold water for an hour. Then turn on the heat.
You don’t have to use apple cider vinegar to extract the minerals. You don’t really need it for chicken to pull the minerals out and it really affects the flavor. You can use anything acidic, including wine, or nothing at all for chick bones. If you making elk or beef bone stock, or other large hard bone stock, using something acidic and letting soak for an hour or so before heating to a boil, will assist in removing the minerals to the liquid. Again, I do not like the flavor of my stocks at all with ACV and have stopped using it altogether. It can be a real turn off, I suggest if you new to this to leave it out.
Great post and pics! I agree about showing children the bones, giblets, too! My kids were fascinated last night as I cut up our chicken into pieces for baking. I did try the Nourishing Traditions stock with the carcass and leftover bones, but this morning the water had completely evaporated! Do you have experience with that? This is the second time it has happened (wish I remembered the first time last night before I put all that work and all those veggies into it). I even added water before I went to bed. Hmm. So sad too as my hsband has had a cold and could really use the nourishment