Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

Have a rotisserie chicken that you are going to use for meals this week?  If so, save the carcass and the legs.  It makes delicious bone broth slow cooker chicken stock.  I love to use the broth in my soups and gravies.

My Daughter Tells Me…

So, my daughter tells me that I should spend some more time blogging about  the things I do in the house that save time and money because that is huge right now.  “Share the cool stuff you do in the house, Mom.”  “You have some interesting ways to save money.”  Really?  Ok, I take the pictures and never share half of them anyway.  So, here you go.  

Shopping Late Yields Me Deals
At one of our local stores at 9pm they discount whole, freshly made deli rotisserie chickens.  I make a point to shop late at night at least one time a month to retrieve what they have left. I’ll pick up a few to bring back home to use for meal prepping.  Many people will throw out the rotisserie chicken after picking off what they need.  I don’t.

Pop Them In The Fridge Till Morning
When I come home, I stick them in the fridge (I normally buy everything they have 2 or 3 typically) for meal prepping the next day.

In The Morning

Chicken #1 Chicken Noodle Soup & Blue Cheese Buffalo Wraps
I strip the chicken off the bones leaving the legs of the chicken, skin and remaining bones left for making a batch of chicken noodle soup.

With the remaining chicken I make a buffalo blue cheese mix for wraps for lunch. No real recipe….

Just add some blue cheese dressing or ranch dressing to a bowl.  Add a few dashes of buffalo wing sauce to the dressing. You only need enough sauce to coat the shredded chicken.  Chop lettuce, onion and add shredded cheese to the mix and fill tortilla shells.

Supper tonight.  Lunch tomorrow for everyone. Check and check.

Chicken Number #2 Bone Broth and Chicken to Add to Salads
Strip the chicken off the bone leaving the legs of the chicken, skin and remaining bones.  Start a batch of bone bone broth that will be frozen and used in recipes at a later date. The remaining chicken that I took off the carcass, I chop up to add to my salads for the rest of the week.

Making the Broth:

Ingredients:
Chicken carcass
6 cups water
Carrots
Celery
Pepper
Onion

Directions:

1.) Pour 6 cups of water over chicken.

In our family we do not eat the skin of the chicken it gets added to make bone broth.

2.) Add a handful of carrots

3.) Cut two ribs of celery into three pieces and add them to the pot.

4.) Cut one large onion into four quarters and add to the pot.

Cook On Low All Day
Cook mixture on low all day. I start the broth in the morning and while I am making supper, I pull the extra chicken and vegetables out and place them in a serving bowl. My son or husband  always eats the entire bowl.

Strain Liquids From Solids
Use a strainer to strain all the liquids from the solids. My large measuring cup and small strainer work perfectly for this job.

Makes 1 Quart & 1 Pint
Pour the liquid stock into glass mason jars. It will make one pint and one quart. Leave about an inch of headroom at the to, if you plan on freezing. Set the jars aside on the counter to cool.

Cool & Scoop Off Fat
As the stock cools a layer of fat will form on top. I like to scoop most of the fat off the top using a spoon.

Storage:

Fridge: Cover and refrigerate. Use the broth within 3 days.

Freezer: Place the seal and ring on the jars. You do not have to heat seal the jars – just set the cover on top and screw the ring on. The jars will stay fresh in your freezer for three months. A note on jars – I have had one jar crack for the years in the freezer.  Just needed to say it CAN happen – but for me, 1 time out 100.

Thawing:
To use, pull jars out of freezer and place in fridge until thawed. 

What Can You Use It For?
Use in any recipe that calls for chicken broth.

Notes:
The seasoning on the skin along with carrots, onions and celery yields flavorful chicken stock for your next recipe.

Yields:
1 Quart and 1 pint.

Enjoy the day and smile because it’s Friiiiiday!!