Why You’ll Love This Chicken Stock
Whether you’re prepping for soup season or just roasted a whole chicken, this is the best way to get every ounce of nourishment out of your ingredients. And with just a few tips and a large stockpot, you’ll be on your way to your own freezer stash of golden, gut-healing broth.
I’ve been making this recipe for years, and it never gets old. It’s one of those quiet kitchen rituals — simmering away in the background while I go about my day. The flavor? Rich and savory. The aroma? Instant comfort. And the benefits? Huge.
Homemade stock is packed with nutrients like calcium, magnesium, and collagen — all extracted through a long, low simmer. It’s also my secret weapon during cold and flu season. This is real, nourishing food that supports the immune system and boosts flavor in just about everything.
If you’re looking for a place to use this stock, start with my homemade ramen noodle soup. You’ll taste the difference immediately.
Ingredients You’ll Need
First off, this is a great recipe for making the most of what you have. That leftover chicken carcass from last night’s dinner? Use it! Raw chicken backs, wings, or even feet? Toss them in too. Add cold water, a splash of vinegar to draw out minerals, and let time do the work.
- Whole raw chicken or bony parts: Backs, necks, wings, and feet all work beautifully. A whole chicken gives you poached meat for other meals.
- Cold water: Always start with cold — it helps draw the most flavor from the bones.
- Apple cider vinegar: A small amount helps pull minerals from the bones into the broth.
- Aromatics: Onion, carrots, celery — the classic trio for depth and balance.
- Fresh herbs: I usually use a few sprigs of parsley. Bay leaf and black peppercorns are great additions too.
- Sea salt: Enhances flavor and helps round out the broth.
- Optional additions: 1–2 bay leaves and a few whole black peppercorns add extra depth and aroma to the finished stock.
You’ll also need a large stockpot or slow cooker, a fine mesh strainer, and a large bowl for straining and cooling the finished stock.
How to Make This Chicken Stock
I usually make two pots at once so I can freeze jars for future meals. And fun fact: the first time I added chicken feet, I forgot to push them down and they floated to the top — definitely gave me a start!
Step 1: Wash your chicken and remove any gizzards. Place the chicken or bones into a large stock pot. Add cold water and vinegar.
Step 2: Bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as it boils, reduce the heat to low and skim off any foam with a slotted spoon. Don’t skim the fat — that’s flavor.
Step 3: Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Keep the heat on low and let it simmer gently. You want tiny bubbles just breaking the surface — never a full boil.
Step 4: Continue simmering uncovered for 4 to 5 hours (or up to 12 for deeper flavor). If your burner runs hot, partially cover the pot or shift it halfway off the burner. In the last 10 minutes, add sea salt and fresh parsley.
Step 5: Strain the stock into a large bowl using a fine-mesh strainer. Discard the solids. If you used a whole chicken, remove the meat from the bones for later use.
Step 6: Let the stock cool to room temperature, then transfer to containers. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, skim the congealed fat layer from the top and discard (or save it for sautéing veggies!).
Alternate method: You can also make this in a slow cooker. Add all ingredients, cover, and cook on low for 8–10 hours.
Storage + Freezing Tips
- Store in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Freeze in glass jars, BPA-free containers, or silicone molds for up to 3 months.
- I like using BPA-free containers from letsgogreen.biz and Sistema containers, as well as repurposed glass quart-size jars from yogurt and Vegenaise. Just soak off the labels and wash thoroughly before filling with stock.
- Always let stock cool to room temperature before refrigerating or freezing.
- Label jars with the date and portion into 2- or 4-cup sizes to make reheating easy.
Pro Tip:
To make weeknight cooking easier, freeze your chicken stock in 2- or 4-cup portions — the amounts most recipes call for. Just leave a little space at the top to prevent cracking when the liquid expands!
Chicken Stock FAQs
Stock is made with bones and has a richer texture thanks to gelatin. Broth is usually made with meat and is lighter.
Yes! Add all ingredients, set to low, and let it cook for 8–10 hours. It’s a great hands-off method.
You may not have used enough bony parts (especially feet, wings, or necks). It may also have been diluted with too much water.
Use it for soup, tacos, chicken salad, or homemade chicken noodle soup.
Yes, once. The second batch will be weaker, but still great for cooking grains or adding to sauces.
If you’ve never made your own chicken stock before, this is your sign. It’s nourishing, budget-friendly, and honestly, one of my favorite things to have in the freezer. Once you start making your own stock, you’ll wonder how you ever settled for store-bought.
Let me know in the comments if you tried it — and don’t forget to check out my Simple Roast Chicken for your next batch of leftover bones.
More Soup Recipes
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The Only Chicken Stock Recipe You’ll Ever Need (From Scratch!)
Ingredients
- 1 whole free-range chicken , or 4 pounds of bony chicken parts, such as backs, necks and wings (if you can get chicken feet, use them!)
- 6 quarts cold water*
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar**
- 1 large onion, peeled and halved
- 2 carrots, peeled
- 2 celery stalks, cut if necessary
- fresh parsley, few sprigs
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
Instructions
- Wash the chicken and remove gizzards from the cavity. Place chicken and/or chicken parts in a large stainless steel stock pot. (You can cut the chicken into pieces if you need to in order to fit in the pot.) Add the cold water and vinegar. Put the temperature on high and bring to a boil.
- Immediately turn heat to low and skim with a slotted spoon any foam that rises to the surface. Try not to skim any of the fat or you will lose a bit of flavor. At this point, it is important to keep the stock to a bare simmer and NOT a boil.
- After skimming off all the foam, add all the vegetables except the parsley. Cook uncovered at the gentlest possible simmer for 4 to 5 hours. (I like to go as long as 12 hours). You want to see tiny bubbles just barely breaking the surface. If the heat from the burner does not go low enough, partially cover the pot or leave your stock pot half on the heat and half off.
- About 10 minutes before finishing the stock, add the sea salt and parsley (this will impart additional mineral ions to the broth).
- Strain the stock into a large glass bowl. Remove the chicken meat from the carcass, if using a whole chicken, and discard the remaining solids. Cool before refrigerating.
- Ladle through a fine mesh sieve into quart-sized containers or whatever size is most useful and refrigerate overnight. The next day, skim off the congealed fat at the top of each container. Refrigerate the stock for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months. I have been using BPA-free containers from letsgogreen.biz as well as Sistema. I also reuse glass quart-size jars from yogurt and Vegenaise. Just soak the labels off and wash before adding your stock.
Notes
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Pamela, what do you do with the cooked vegetables from the stock? Use them as compost? I have been cooking my own stock since I can remember, but first I would boil it and then simmer it – it never turned out nice and clear! So live and learn!
the gentlest simmer is key to a clear broth. You can also strain the stock through cheesecloth for a super clean stock, but I think a fine mesh sieve is perfectly good. Usually I throw the vegetables out since there’s not much left to them after they’ve been cooked for so long. They’re a bit oily from the stock and they have come into contact with animal products, so I don’t compost them. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for your tips!
hi – i only have rice vinegar or white wine vinegar in the house – could i use one of these in place of apple cider vinegar? thanks
either is totally fine. the vinegar does not add flavor, it’s merely to pull extra minerals out of the bones. in fact, you don’t need vinegar to make a good broth, it just makes it a little more nutritious. so excited you’re going to make stock from scratch — it makes a world of difference in taste as well as nutrition!
I’m doing it Pamela! The whole chicken is in the oven (a little early) and I plan on making stock. Are the gizzards trash or should they be cooking and just outside the cavity?
That’s awesome, Jen! Some people use the giblets for stock or gravy, but it’s not my thing so I hate to admit it, but I toss them in the garbage.
Pamela, where do you purchase these nifty quart-size storage containers in which to freeze your delicious stock? Many thanks!
I bought the quart-size containers at Smart & Final. You can store your stock in anything, really. I’m on the lookout for BPA-free containers — I’ll let you know if I find anything.
This was so delicious!!! Yes, by far the best chicken soup I’ve had! I actually prepped my nanny on how to make it (since it takes several hours) and she totally nailed it! Looking forward to making it myself next time! Thx for this great recipe!!
I’m on a mission to get everyone to make homemade chicken stock! I’m so glad you agree that it is the best!
We have made this chicken stock twice. It is so easy to make and turns out delicious. We have made soups with it and it is so yummy. It is also easy to freeze and keep it for whenever you want it.
Thanks for the great recipe! Question: if using a whole chicken for the broth, what will the poached meat be good for? Will it be dry/tough after 5 hours of cooking? Thanks!
Good question! The chicken meat will be soft and moist after cooking in liquid for all that time. In fact, my kids will start sneaking it while it’s cooling in a bowl on the counter. Normally I use a whole chicken if I have a plan for the meat. I have used it in chicken salad, shredded into soup for a classic chicken soup, pot pie, shredded with my taco seasoning, for enchiladas or burritos.
I added chicken, bok choy and star pasta and my kids and husband LOVED this soup. My five year old even asked for it in her thermos for school. So delicious and so easy!!
This is a very easy recipe. I never thought I would be making my own homemade stock and now I can’t imagine buying a commercial brand!
Thanks for all your advice to keep us healthy!
Music to my ears!
You were my first chicken stock, attempt ever, Pamela, and it was delicious and easy. I always have some on hand and split up the portions to use for different soups or as is!
You’ll never go back to a box, Laurey!