This recipe has got to be my very favorite, right next to my homemade sandwich bread. Seriously… Chicken broth is so stinking simple and easy….AND a huge money-saver! We live in a rural area, so I shop every two weeks for groceries, and before I was making my own chicken broth, I was paying $2 for 32 oz of organic Chicken Broth… now that is at Aldi, which is definitely a better price than maybe Wal-mart, but when I was buying 2-3 at a time, every 2 weeks, that adds up to $10+ a month, which I certainly could spend elsewhere. When I realized just how easy this is, and how much it saves me, I don’t think I will ever buy chicken broth again, barring an emergency!
This was the first time I’ve made it with two full chickens, but it doesn’t really affect anything except give a stronger flavor!
You will want to start off in the morning and be able to have this cooking all day and night, so maybe laundry day :).
Begin by placing your two whole chickens in a large 10 Qt+ stockpot. Fill stockpot almost to the top with water (this took alomost 2 gallons for me). Bring to a boil on high heat, and skim and discard all of the foamy junk that somes to the top.
Turn heat down to low or low-medium and add onion and garlic.After 6-7 hours, remove chickens from pot and allow to cool until they can be handled. Separate the meat from the bones and skin to use for meals, and return bones and skin to the pot. Continue to simmer broth on low heat overnight.
In the morning, turn off heat and allow broth to cool to room temperature. Place entire pot of broth in refrigerator overnight to solidify any fat that is floating on top.
Skim solid fat off of the top and strain broth to remove all of the bones, skin, etc.
Separate into baggies and containers for storage; Freeze or can in jars.
This gives me 2 meals of chicken and 2 gallons of broth, which saves me almost $25.
Homemade Chicken Broth
- 2 Whole Chickens
- 2 Gallons Water
- 1 Onion, Chopped
- 2-3 Cloves Garlic, minced or crushed
In a large stockpot, combine chicken and water over high heat and bring to a boil.
Skim and discard all of the foamy junk that comes to the top. Add onion and garlic and turn heat down to low/low-medium.
After 6-7 hrs of cook time, remove chickens from broth and cool until they can be handled. Separate meat from bones and skin. Use meat for meals and return bones and skin to broth; continue to cook broth on low heat overnight.
After 18-24 hours of cook time, remove broth from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Chill overnight.
Skim fat off of the top of the chilled broth and strain broth through a tight mesh or cheesecloth to remove bones, skin, and any other solid pieces.
Portion into bags or containers for storage.
Enjoy as a base for your favorite dishes!
Thank you so much as always for stopping by! I know I say it always but I cannot stress how much it means to me that you choose to stop by my little corner. I do hope you come back again soon!
<3/Jenn
impassionedkitchen 