Thick Veal/Beef Stock
With this base stock you can make virtually any dark sauce you need.
One of the nicest things about dining out in restaurants is experiencing foods you can’t make at home. Having said that, it doesn’t have to be that way.
During their first year of training all young chefs are taught how to make perfect stocks, stocks from which they are later taught to make virtually every sauce possible.
Once you learn how to make the perfect stock, be it veal, beef, fish or chicken stock, all those delicious restaurant sauces that make the meal worth paying top dollar for will be well within your reach.
Enjoy this delicious veal/beef stock recipe which can be made with either veal or beef bones.
Thick Veal/Beef Stock
Ingredients
- 2 kilograms veal bones
- 3 carrots peeled and chopped roughly
- 3 onions peeled and chopped roughly
- 3 stalks celery washed and chopped roughly
- 5 bay leaves
- black peppecorns
- water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220 degrees (430 farenheit)
- Separate the bones and spread them out in a baking tray and bake for approx 50 minutes, turning once during the cooking process, or until browned nicely.
- Remove them from the oven and allow to cool slightly.
- Place the carrot, celery, onion, bay leaves and approx 10 peppercorns in a large stock pot.
- Using tongs carefully remove the bones from the tray and place them in the pot.
- Place the pot on the stove and fill with cold water, ensure the bones are completely immersed in the water and then fill half that amount again, (should be about 3-4 litres or 1 gallon).
- Turn the stove burner to high and bring the stock to the boil, once boiling reduce to a very slow simmer, and simmer for at least 6 hours (the longer, the richer the stock I recommend up to 24 hours, particularly if making a Jus with this stock. If cooking for this long please ensure that you keep an eye on the water level and add some water as required throughout the cooking period; do not let it dry up).
- Turn off the heat and allow the stock to cool enough that you can safely strain it without burning yourself. If you do not have a large enough sieve take the bones out with tongs first.
- After all the large items have been strained and discarded out of the stock, pour the stock through a fine sieve in order to remove all the fine particles (the sieve may need to be cleaned a few times during this process). Muslin (cheesecloth) can be used as well.
- Place the strained stock in the fridge for a few hours or overnight, after which the fat will have solidified on top, take the fat off and discard.
- You now have one very fine stock on your hands.
- Personally however at this time I like to make it even more flavourful, darker and richer.
- These next steps are optional.
- Repeat the entire process with new ingredients and use this already prepared stock as the water in the second recipe, top with water as needed.
Notes
Related: Red Wine Jus
Related: Common Substitutes for Chicken Broth
Related: 7 Substitutes for Beef Broth
Related: Risotto with Italian Veal Sausage, Taleggio & Frangelico
Related: Zurich-Style Veal (Emince Zurichoise)
See? These are the type of recipes you should seek out for practical advice – recipes written by professional chefs that have hands on experience and know what they’re talking about. The majority of recipes you find on the net are what I call “Betty Crocker recipes”. They might sound good but are poorly written and would never work in a busy kitchen. Lot’s of good material here on Chef’s Pencil.
Thanks so much, Bryan! We appreciate your support and kind words!
could you put this in the oven overnight if you wanted to cook for the full 24 hours? I wouldnt feel safe leaving it on the stovetop unsupervised. if so at what temperature? cheers
Great question! Yes you can. Not sure on the temperature as all ovens differ. Check the temperature of the stock on the stove top, then try and maintain that temperature in the oven by checking it a few times over the first few hours in there. My guess is it would be around 150-160 degrees C.