It’s the day after the foodiest day of the year. Somehow, despite your distended belly, you’ve managed to double down on a sammich made of craps of meat you’ve picked off the bird, a healthy smear of cranberry sauce, a good gob of leftover stuffing and some congealed gravy. (As far as we’re concerned, Thanksgiving is all about the day-after snacking.) Yesterday’s big feast is now all but a memory. But wait, don’t ditch that turkey carcass! You can still squeeze out precious drops of deliciousness from that bird’s bones.
Photo credit: TheDeliciousLife, on Flickr
Homemade turkey stock makes a delicious base for all kinds of soups, stews and braises, and extends the value of your gobbler. Best of all, it’s dead simple, especially if you have a slow cooker.
Just chop up a couple onions, carrots and ribs of celery. If you want to get all fancy, this is called mirepoix. Don’t worry about being precise; just break them down into chunks. Heck, you don’t even have to peel the carrots or remove the onion skins. We think they give great color to the final product. Chuck them all into your pot and add the turkey carcass. (If your carcass is bigger than your pot, you may need to use kitchen shears to break it down a bit.) Add water to cover it all.
Time to think about seasonings. Really, you can use whatever herbs strike your fancy. We like a nice wad of parsley, a few leaves of fresh sage and a bay leaf or two. Chefs get all hoity-toity and tie them up in a cute parcel, but since everything’s getting strained off at the end of the day, we don’t bother.
Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook at a low simmer. If it’s bubbling more than every several seconds, you’re running a little hot. Low and slow is the way to go here.
After a few hours, your house will smell amazing and you’ll want to apply the stock as cologne. Using a pair of tongs, gently squeeze one of the turkey bones. Ideally, it’ll crumble under pressure. They’ll have given everything they’ve got.
Line a colander with two layers of cheesecloth and set it over a large pot or container. Remove as many chunks from your stock as you can by hand, then gently pour the stock into the colander and let drain. Discard or compost your spent carcass, vegetables and cheesecloth. They’ve got nothing more for you.
Once the stock has cooled, cover and refrigerate it. Once fully chilled, any fat from the stock will have risen and congealed as a layer at the top, which you can remove. Your stock will keep in the fridge for a week, or for six months in the freezer.
