Tasty Turkey Broth
Don’t throw away the turkey carcass. Homemade broth is the best, and you’ll be amazed at just how astonishing the taste difference is versus mass produced store bought. Broth is very forgiving, so if you don’t have a few ingredients, don’t worry.
Ingredients
Method
- Pick all the meat off the carcass that you can to use for a variety of other recipes. If you don’t want to deal with the meat right away, chop it up and freeze it in manageable small portions.
- Get everything chopped, sliced, and diced. You don’t have to peel or neatly slice anything; just break it up into chunks. Some cooks like to take a meat tenderizing hammer to the carcass to crack the bones and expose the marrow. It doesn’t hurt and might help reduce the volume of a big carcass to fit into a smaller pot.
- Put all the ingredients in an 8 to 12-quart tall stock pot. Add enough cold water to cover by 3 inches.
- Bring to a gentle simmer, partially cover, and simmer 5 to 6 hours. The longer it cooks, the richer the taste.
- Check on it every half hour or so and keep the solid ingredients covered by about 3 inches of liquid. If you are losing more than a cup or so every thirty minutes, you probably have it too hot. Back off the heat a fraction.
- When it’s done, you’ll probably know by the smell. The celery should look almost white.
- Let it cool. Skim any fat from the broth by running a folded paper towel over its surface or by skimming it with a slotted spoon or flat spatula wrapped in a paper towel. Be careful you don’t get burned.
- Taste the broth for seasoning. If it is way off, season the broth, bring it back to a boil, simmer for at least 30 minutes, and let it cool again.
- Strain the broth through a double layer of cheesecloth over a colander set over a clean pot. When the cheesecloth is full, gather the corners and twist tight to squeeze out all the delicious broth. You may want to strain the broth again depending on how it looks to you.
- Pour the broth into large jars (I use Mason style jars) and refrigerate overnight. The fat will solidify at the top so you can just spoon it off. Generally the broth will be very thick and jelly-like, which is perfect.
Nutrition
Notes
Good broth needs to simmer for at least 7 or 8 hours before you serve it. The best is if you can cool it overnight.
You don’t want to use your very best vegetables, since you’ll discard every bit of them once the broth is complete. Save your “little bit wilted” celery, “day old” carrot sticks, and the onion that has started to sprout. If you use organic vegetables, don’t peel them; just rinse and chop. I don’t use lemon in my broth, but some people do.
Keep the broth a week or two in the refrigerator, bringing it to a boil every few days and simmering a few minutes to keep it from spoiling, or freeze it for up to six months.
White wine is optional, but alcohol releases the widest range of flavors, ones that aren’t soluble in water or fats alone. Most of the alcohol cooks off. Cooking wines make your broth taste more like vinegar, so use an inexpensive but drinkable Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, or other dry white wine.
You can follow the same basic recipe for chicken broth, using a few birds. You’ll need a big 8 to 12-quart pot, cheesecloth, and a colander.
Thanks for hosting me on your blog, Hallee!