Using a slow cooker is currently my favorite way to make chicken stock. One of the challenges with making stock or chicken broth (technically, I think the “broth” recipe linked here is actually still stock since it uses bones) is keeping the liquid at the brink of a very slow boil (I aim for keeping the liquid between 190° – 200°F / 88° – 94°C) over the entire cooking time so that the stock does not become cloudy. The slow cooker method never brings the liquid to a boil avoiding that concern.

Additional flavorings such as onions, heads of garlic, leeks, celery, radishes–really anything you’d like–can also be added. I used to save various scraps such as ends of onions, celery tops and leaves, etc. in the freezer for use in making stock later. However, these days I tend to make a pretty basic stock and add other flavors when using it for cooking. Finally, while I have not really noticed a difference, cutting some larger bones in half also exposes the marrow inside it, which some things I’ve seen on the Internet say adds more flavor.

While I have a pressure cooker that is able to reach the “high” pressure needed for food safety when canning chicken stock, that is something you should only do at your own risk. Therefore, I will not talk too much about the process other than at my elevation using quart containers, I “can” the stock for 25 minutes at 15lbs of pressure with a natural release at the end. For shorter-term (and arguably safer) storage, the stock freezes well as long as you leave space in whatever container you use as the stock will expand when frozen. Making ice cubes out of the stock is also a good way to have pretty much any amount of stock on hand without having to worry about having stock left over that needs to be used within a few days for something else.

Timings

Prep: 2 minutes (plus any time needed to remove bones)
Cook: 5 minutes
Wait: 4 – 8 hours plus 40 minutes
Total: 4 hours 47 minutes (up to 8 hours 47 minutes)

Equipment Notes

• I use a 6qt slow cooker for this.

Ingredients

• 1 chicken carcass (or about 2lb of various chicken bones) with larger parts like the neck bone and rib cage cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1T tomato paste
• 1/2t peppercorns
• 1 bay leaf
• 16C water

Steps

1. Spread the chicken bones on a rimmed baking sheet and cook for 30 minutes in a 400°F / 200°C oven.
2. Spread half the tomato paste on the top side of the bones, then flip them and spread the rest of the tomato paste on the other side. Continue cooking in the oven for 10 more minutes making sure that the tomato paste does not start to char.
3. Add the chicken bones and other ingredients to a slow cooker set to high and cook for 4 – 8 hours.
4. Let the stock cool some then remove bones and other large objects with a spider or similar tool.
5. Skim fat off the top, or cover and place in the refrigerator overnight allowing the fat to harden some making it easier to remove.
6. Pass the liquid through a very fine strainer and store as desired.