Hi everyone,

I was wondering what stock everyone used?

I'd love to make my own stock, but I simply don't have the time...plus it isn't my house to hog the kitchen! Also sometimes I know I will need stock and won't have a ready made batch on hand.

So what does everyone use?

I'd love to have the TIME to make my own stock.

Can't beat good old oxo in my opinion. Can't be doing with these ones you have to dissolve in hot water.

Crumble and go for me

Knorr stock cubes are pretty good.

boiled chicken carcass onion,leek makes a decent stock. dont need time to do it.

Can I ask how long you boil it for, or do you simmer? And can I use the bones from a roast chicken?

I really won't have the time until I have my own kitchen, but it is good for future reference.


Thanks for replies, does anyone use tinned stock?

Hi PamelaL <waves>

Its the bones you want in it that give the flavour. Just half hour boiling away, another half simmering, until the liquid has got down to the level you want, then i seive it into an icecube tray to go in the freezer. Any left over unused veg can go in aswell to save it spoiling.

Sorry for the stupid question....but when you need to use it, is it concentrated enough to dissolve into a pint of water ?(like you would a stock cube).

I always make my own; both beef and chicken. It's a pain to do but it lasts months when frozen - I normally do about 3-4 litres a time. I usually do 5 hours simmering then boil it down before freezing.

If you only want small amounts then use a slow cooker as you can leave it on overnight and there won't be as much smell as most of the moisture is kept in.

You can use either raw bones (for white stock) or cooked bones (for brown stock).

Do butchers still give bones for stockmaking away for free

I always keep all the flavours of Knorr stock cubes in my cupboard.

I use home-made stock with an OXO crumbled in for good measure. Gawd knows what they put in it, but it's got that "meaty" flavour.

I went the whole hog and made a batch of Demi-Glace last year. Major fart-arsing about so I won't be doing that again.

I find Marigold Swiss Vegetable stock powder good for most things.

Don't know if they all do but mine does. Because it's raw animal waste they have to spend a lot of money having it collected/disposed of properly.

i'm going to have to ask, i've heard about it in the past but was always too shy to ask.