Kitchen & Bar

On this phone

How to get around

The bar across the top scrolls sideways. These are the same stops, with the job of each one written out.

Foundations

Stock

Pulling gelatin and flavor out of bones and aromatics without pulling out the things that make it cloudy and bitter.

What you are actually controlling

  • bones
  • water level
  • temperature
  • time
  • aromatics
  • skimming

Naming the dials is most of the difference between cooking and following. Everything below is a way of moving one of these.

How it goes wrong

  • thin and watery
  • cloudy
  • bitter
  • greasy

If your result is on this list, the step it belongs to is named below and so is the way back.

The loop

Stock5 steps. Each step shows the cue that confirms it worked below the step, and above it the way it fails together with the correction that returns you to the same step.GOES WRONGA finished stock thatstays liquid in thefridge.1Use joints, not justbonesLOOKS RIGHTSticky fingers afterhandling them raw.GOES WRONGPale bones and a stockthat tastes like warmwater.2Roast first if youwant a brown stockLOOKS RIGHTDark brown bones, a darksticky tray, and a smelllike the best part of a…GOES WRONGA rolling boil and a stockthat has gone cloudy andgreasy.3Cover barely, thenhold below a simmerLOOKS RIGHTBarely moving. The surfacetrembles rather thanrolls.GOES WRONGA scummy line around thepot and a stock thattastes off.4Skim the grey, keepthe fat for laterLOOKS RIGHTA clear surface with a rimof clean fat.GOES WRONGBitter, vegetal, andslightly sulphurous aftersix hours with the onion…5Add vegetables lateand salt neverLOOKS RIGHTClean vegetable sweetness,not a boiled-cabbage edge.
Read down, not just across. Below each step is the cue that says it worked; above it, dashed, is how it fails and the correction that sends you back to the same step.

Step by step

  1. 1

    Use joints, not just bones

    Wings, feet, necks, knuckles. Collagen lives in connective tissue, and gelatin is the whole point.

    Looks right
    Sticky fingers after handling them raw.
    Goes wrong
    A finished stock that stays liquid in the fridge.
    Way back
    Reduce it hard, or add a couple of chicken wings and simmer another hour. A stock with no body will not make a sauce cling.
  2. 2

    Roast first if you want a brown stock

    Bones and vegetables in a hot oven until deeply coloured, then deglaze the roasting tray into the pot.

    Looks right
    Dark brown bones, a dark sticky tray, and a smell like the best part of a roast dinner.
    Goes wrong
    Pale bones and a stock that tastes like warm water.
    Way back
    You cannot roast it after the fact. A white stock is a legitimate thing — use it as one.
  3. 3

    Cover barely, then hold below a simmer

    Water an inch over the bones. Bring it up slowly and hold it where a bubble breaks every few seconds.

    Looks right
    Barely moving. The surface trembles rather than rolls.
    Goes wrong
    A rolling boil and a stock that has gone cloudy and greasy.
    Way back
    Turn it down. Boiling emulsifies fat into the liquid and shatters proteins into suspension — both permanent, and both the reason cloudy stock tastes muddy.
  4. 4

    Skim the grey, keep the fat for later

    Take the grey foam off in the first twenty minutes. Fat can be lifted cold, at the end, in one disc.

    Looks right
    A clear surface with a rim of clean fat.
    Goes wrong
    A scummy line around the pot and a stock that tastes off.
    Way back
    Skim now. Anything left will emulsify in and stay.
  5. 5

    Add vegetables late and salt never

    Aromatics in the last hour. Leave the stock unsalted so it can be reduced later without ruining it.

    Looks right
    Clean vegetable sweetness, not a boiled-cabbage edge.
    Goes wrong
    Bitter, vegetal, and slightly sulphurous after six hours with the onion in.
    Way back
    Strain it and dilute with water. Salted stock reduced into a sauce is the standard way to ruin an afternoon's work — leave the seasoning to whatever it becomes.

Watch somebody do it

Third-party video. Opens in a new tab — nothing is embedded and nothing is fetched from a video platform until you click.

Reviewed video for this technique. Reading a cue is one thing; seeing it is faster.

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