PROCESS:
We make beef stock by simmering beef bones with vegetable and aromatic herbs and spices in water… the resulting liquid is called stock. Stock is used to flavor soups and sauces
Start with beef bones. They are filled with bone marrow, which has a lot of great flavor. You want the bones cut into small pieces like this so they will impart their flavor quickly. Huge beef bones can take up to 12 hours to completely cook out. Rub or paint the bones with vegetable oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. And roast them in the center of a hot 400 degree oven until they turn dark brown. The darker we roast the bones, the darker our finished beef stock will be.
Notice that there is no water in the pan we want the liquid of the bones to drip onto the pan to be used for flavor later.
Next we need “Mirepoix” which is rough cut celery, onions and carrots. You may use the whole vegetable, or the peelings, and trim from another recipe.
Take your chef knife and rough cut the celery, onion, and carrots.. You don’t even need to peel the vegetables Add some fresh garlic for additional flavor.
You may also use leeks which are a type of onion. Make sure to wash the leeks carefully after you slice them because they have a lot of places for dirt to hide.
Start the stock by heating butter or vegetable oil in a large stock pot, add the vegetables and cook until they soften a little.
For the aromatic herbs and spices I’m using fresh thyme and oregano, Just add it to the pot… Add water to cover the vegetables….or you may use dried herbs instead, and make what is called a bouquet garni, To make a bouquet garni, take a coffee filter and add some dried thyme, oregano and peppercorns. Tie it with a string around the filter to make a pouch… Submerge the pouch in the liquid. Then tie the other end of the string to the handle of the pot. We can remove it later, kinda like a tea bag. If you don’t have string you can substitute a twist tie…
Let’s check the bones. They’re starting to brown nicely… See the oil, that’s liquid marrow, the marrow has great flavor
This dark stuff stuck to the bottom of the pan it is called fond..! Lay the bones down and paint them with tomato paste or puree.
Put the bones back in the oven to roast a little bit longer. TIME LAPSE…
These bones are perfect, Add them to the stock, I’ll add the oil and deglaze the roasting pan with water. Scrape the fond with a whisk to loosen it
Add a little more cold water… and turn down the heat to simmer, cook slowly for about 3 more hours
I know this seems like a lot of work, but you can’t duplicate the flavor with anything from a can. Don’t let it boil dry in your stock pot… add more liquid as it cooks off.
Strain the stock into a clean sauce pan and discard the bones and vegetables. Place the stock back on the stove and bring it to a boil, allow the stock to cook until the liquid reduces to half its volume.
Refrigerate the stock overnight… See how the stock has separated, Fat layer on top, Good beef stock on the bottom
Remove the and discard the fat. And your stock is ready to go…
Stock can be kept frozen and used in any recipe that calls for beef or brown stock.
INGREDIENTS:
Mirepoix:
Celery
Onion
Carrot
Garlic
Shallot
Beef Marrow Bones
Oil
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper
Tomato Paste
Water to cover
Bouquet Garni:
Thyme
Oregano
Black pepper
*beef, add some inexpensive beef ro enhance the flavor and richen the stock