Fresh vegetable stock

First of all, I = cooking idiot.

My friend from the heimat was just visiting and she and her boyfriend are really, really good cooks - not the kind that use cookbooks, the kind that just have "a feeling" how something should be done.

We made a lot of meals together - they were trying to teach me how to cook. I plan on asking her to write down a lot of the stuff we did, but we'll see.

Anyway I'd like to make risotto again and last time we just made our own vegetable stock by cooking down some big leeks. I bought two leeks again, but I'm kind of fuzzy on the details now. Just clean them, cut them up into big chunks, cover with water and cook for a few hours on low heat after bringing to a boil, right?

Any help appreciated!



Wow, that's some pretty fast moderator action (title was improved within 2 seconds)

Just put whatever scraps of veg you have lying around in a saucepan.
1/2 veg to 1/2 water
Bring to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for an hour.
Then just strain it.
I usually chuck some herbs in depending on what I'm making and /or black pepper.

What you've described is just some leek broth. To get some real flavour, you'll want to start with the trio: carrot, celery and onion.

Cut the trio up into middle-sized pieces. In a stock pot, fry the carrots in some butter &/or oil over low heat. After a few minutes add the onions and celery (and leek, if you like). When the onions go translucent, turn up the heat a bit and let the onions get dark. Add seasoning (salt, pepper, bay leaf, maybe some fresh herbs) and stir a bit.

Once some of the onions have gone brown you can add water. Lots of it. Simmer over low heat and if you want, add a bouquet garni. You can add some other veg at this point. Especially good are onion skins, potato peelings, celery/fennel greens and whatever other veg scraps you have (no avocado though!).

After a couple hours you'll have a nice stock. You'll notice it needs salt. Try to hold off on salting it between tastings until the end.

Sooner or later don riina will stop by this thread to tell you what an idiot I am and how he would do it differently... once he finishes drinking his glass of cooking wine.

woof.

Thanks Mr. Doggie. Sounds good!

To build just a bit on BadDoggie's post:

While onion skins do lend a beautiful color to a stock, most people find their taste unpleasant, so I wouldn't use them.

Chop all your veggies into small pieces about 1/2 to 1 inch square--this increases the surface area and the flavors will come out more quickly.

Start the stock with cold water. Bring to a boil and then keep at a simmer for 30-45 minutes. After about that long the veggies will have given up all their flavor. If you want the stock more concentrated, after straining the veggies out reduce the stock by boiling it slowly, uncovered, until it is as strong as you like. I'll emphasize that you should wait to salt until the end of cooking.

Strain the stock as soon as it has finished cooking, because some veggies or herbs will go bitter if you cook them longer than about 45 minutes or leave them steeping in warm liquid.

You don't have to fry the veggies in oil or butter before beginning but it does bring out the flavors. If you don't want the extra fat you can chill the stock and remove the hardened fat from the top.

Don't put old tired veggies in stock. They can only give the flavor they possess, which is not much. Use fresh, clean veggies (or only very slightly old ones).

Things that are good in veggie stock:

onions, leeks, carrots, celery, potatoes, winter squashes, summer squashes (like zucchini), chard, kale, beet greens, tomatoes, mushrooms, celeriac, eggplant, lettuce, fennel bulb, asparagus, peas, turnips, rutabagas, cabbages, green beans, garlic, parsley, marjoram, oregano, basil, thyme, bay leaves, lovage, borage, lentils, corn cobs, mung bean sprouts, miso, tamari, soy sauce

Pick and choose a few things from that list that sound like they would go well together (particularly thinking about the flavors you want in your risotto) and go to town!

Indeed I will.

Onion skins indeed. Tut, tut. Make it all taste as bitter as a northern union leader.

You know I love you really BD.

By the way, the celery used is usually celery root (celeriac), not celery stalks.

But to be honest, if you are just learning to cook, making broth is something I wouldn't put high on the list. Maybe others would, but I've found a broth mix that I like that isn't too salty that I normally use instead. Much simpler and faster.

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I wouldn't have thought that making broth/stock would have been that important either, and I do have that powder stuff that you just mix with water, but my friend convinced me that a good stock (veg. or chicken) really makes the difference in the taste of risotto or soup, for example. And the stuff that we made together was really, really good, so I kind of believe her.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I know it makes a difference. It's just how much effort I'm willing to do for my meal.

Best tip, if you do make up a big load of stock, put the extra into your ice cube tray, freeze it and then dump them all in a plastic bag in your freezer. Fresh stock in small portions, available all the time.

@Showem: which is your preferred broth mix and where do you get it from?

Showem - the ice cube thing is good - otherwise it can last in the fridge for a week, right? My solution so far has been to put the extra stock in a 1.5 liter empty water bottle (special tip for people with limited fridge space)