ISO more stock help.

[coookies]

Making another batch of chicken stock tonight - can't believe how fast the 14 cups I made last time went - this time using whole raw chicken and a few lightly roasted veggies (yum!) but I didn't watch it and it ended up in a rolling boil. I read that boiling stock will incorporate the fat and make it greasy but if I plan on refrigerating it so that the fat can rise to the top should it still be okay or will the fat be in there for good?
Thanks in advance
Katie

 

[Alix]

You're fine. Let your stock sit in the fridge for a bit and you can skim off the fat. No biggie at all.

 

[coookies]

thank you!

 

[jennyema]

Depends on how long you boiled it for.

Boiling emulsifies the water and fat together.

So let it cool overnight and skim off as much fat as you can. It might still be somewhat cloudy or greasy, but I'm sure it will taste good.

 

[SugarMama]

I agree, you should be able to remove atleast some of it. It'll still be good though

 

[Alix]

If it looks cloudy then you can usually fix that by tossing in an uncooked chicken breast and letting it simmer. I can't remember the science behind it, (something about protein strings and stuff) but it will clear the soup for you. And of course add more flavor.

 

[jennyema]

If it looks cloudy then you can usually fix that by tossing in an uncooked chicken breast and letting it simmer. I can't remember the science behind it, (something about protein strings and stuff) but it will clear the soup for you. And of course add more flavor.

I dont think just simmering a breast works. You can clear stock that is clouded by protein by making a raft with ground chicken and egg. It attracts the protein and clears the liquid, but it's sort of a pain. You're basically making consomme.

If it's cloudy from emulsified fat, there really isn't much you can do.

It's not the end of the world to have cloudy stock, though. There's lots of ways to cover it up.

 

[Alix]

Hmmmm...it usually works for me. Sounds logical though. Perhaps my clouding wasn't emulsified fat?

 

[coookies]

Last night, I opened it up to skim off the fat and to put it into little freezable containers... there was *some* fat on the surface but not in great huge sheets like last time (then again, last time I made it with a chicken breast that had been roasted smothered in butter). It was definitely harder to get all of the fat out as it was in small particles, so lost about a cup and a half of stock spooning it all out, and I could see a some grease as I poured the stock into the containers but overall I think it will be fine, and its winter so a little bit of extra fat is okay I'm going to use it today in tomato bisque, I think. Thank you for all of your help guys.

 

[jennyema]

You can mask stock that has a bit of a grease in a soup by adding milk or cream or pureed vegetables or beans.