Chicken Broth

Chicken Broth

Chicken broth is a comforting staple that’s been a part of cooking traditions across cultures for centuries. Although often confused with chicken stock, the two differ in their preparation and usage.

Broth is typically made using meat, like a whole chicken, and has a lighter, more delicate flavor, while stock uses bones and simmers for longer, resulting in a thicker, richer liquid. Making chicken broth at home provides a flavorful base for many dishes and yields a beautifully poached chicken that can be used in meal prepping. This is a great routine to get into a couple of times a month, as it allows you to efficiently use the chicken in multiple meals, such as our Chicken Salad with Fresh Herbs, hearty soups, and quick stir fry dishes.

Adding the fresh thyme towards the end of cooking preserves its delicate, aromatic quality, enhancing the broth without overpowering it. Adding the herbs in the beginning will result in a “blown out” cooked herb flavor. This recipe keeps the brightness of the thyme.

Homemade chicken broth is incredibly useful; it can be the base for soups, used in sauces, or as a cooking liquid for grains. It’s also perfect for braising vegetables or meats, working as a versatile building block to construct your dishes.

Main Ingredients:

Whole Chicken: Get the best you can find. Air-dried, free-range will give you more flavor in your broth and will also be a better chicken for your dishes. Don’t shy away from the fat, either. When the broth cools, the fat will solidify at the top of the container. You can either discard or use it to step up your dumplings for chicken and dumplings. It has many uses…

Bay Leaves: These aromatic leaves add a subtle, herbal flavor that complements the other ingredients. Few things go as well with chicken as black pepper, celery, and bay leaf.

Carrot, Onion, and Celery: This classic trio, known as mirepoix, forms the aromatic foundation of the broth. The vegetables add sweetness, depth, and a gentle aromatic quality.

Peppercorns: This will give the broth a very subtle fruity spice. Feel free to add more or omit to your liking. 

Thyme Bundle: The thyme really “completes the thought” of the broth. It’s not overpowering and aligns with the other flavors to enhance the finished product.

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Chicken Broth

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Course: Soups

This is a great routine to get into a couple of times a month, as it allows you to efficiently use the chicken in multiple meals, such as our Chicken Salad with Fresh Herbs, hearty soups, and quick stir fry dishes.

Yields

2.5

quarts

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

10

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

20

minutes

Cook Mode

Keep the screen on while I cook

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken

• 15 cups water

• 2 tsp salt

• 3 bay leaves

• 1/4 carrot, large diced

• 1/4 onion, large diced

• 1 celery rib, large diced

• 5 peppercorns

• 1 thyme bundle

Method

• Cover the whole chicken in a large pot with 15 cups of water.
• Add the salt, bay leaves, diced carrot, diced onion, diced celery, and peppercorns to the pot.
• Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, covering the pot with a lid slightly cracked. This is when you start the one hour timer.
• Once simmering, skim any foam or scum that rises to the surface. This helps keep the broth clear and removes impurities.
• Maintain the broth at a gentle simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour.
• After 1 hour, add the thyme bundle to the pot and continue to simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
• Check the chicken for doneness by ensuring the juices run clear when pierced at the thickest part of the thigh or the internal temperature reaches 165°F (74°C).
• Carefully remove the chicken from the pot. Set it aside to cool, then debone the meat for later use in other dishes like Chicken Salad with Fresh Herbs
• Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth into a large bowl or another pot to remove solids. 
• Allow the broth to cool at room temperature before transferring it to storage containers. I like to use one quart deli cups. This gives you a pre-measured increment, as most recipes use one quart of stock or broth.
• Chill the broth in the refrigerator if using within a few days, or freeze in portions for up to three months.

Field Notes

• Try using this chicken broth with our Cornbread Stuffing, Sausage and Sage Stuffing, Black Beans and Black-Eyed Peas.
• Use the perfectly poached chicken in our Chicken Salad with Fresh Herbs.