Pressure Cooker Chicken Stock

December 29-30, 2012

I didn't know I needed a pressure cooker until Cook's Illustrated told me so. The recipes they included looked tasty so  I did a little on-line research on the topic. One of the selling points is the opportunity to make home made chicken broth. I have a number of recipes that include chicken broth and I've always gone with canned or used "Better Than Bullion" chicken base. Seems like every site I read talked about how much better home made stock is and how easy it is to do in the pressure cooker. After making my 5-star Red Beans and Rice with home made stock I'm convinced. I'm a convert to home made chicken stock and the pressure cooker. Homemade broth is silky, velvety, and smooth.

Being a Cook's Illustrated recipe this has more steps than some others. For example, Mike Vrobele, author of the Dad Cooks Dinner site has a much simpler recipe which I plan to try. You can find my detailed recipe here.

One of the nice things about chicken stock is you don't need expensive parts of the chicken. I went to New Season's Market in search of chicken backs. I figured with as many chickens they cut up in a day they must have backs left over. Apparently they do, but the guy helping me couldn't find them in the freezer. It was a busy Saturday afternoon so I settled on 2 pounds of chicken wings.

2 pounds of chicken cut at the joint; an onion, some garlic, bay leaves, salt and vegetable oil

Fry the chicken pieces until they get a bit of color

Simple ingredients; terrific results 

Sauté the onions after taking out the chicken parts

3 quarts water

Add the garlic, bay leaves, and a hint of salt. Cook under high pressure for 1 hour.

When the hour is up, quick release the pressure cooker and remove the lid.

Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer lined with cheese-cloth. I've found the easiest way to remove the fat is the container in the refrigerator overnight. It rises to the top and congeals to make it very easy to remove.

Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer lined with cheese cloth.

Parcel out into individual containers . 2 1/2 quarts of stock.