Chicken Stock

Recipe:

Although there are some differences between STOCK and BROTH, we decided that today's delicious golden liquid must be a stock. Why is that? STOCK is prepared by placing the bones of either chicken, beef, pork or fish in a large pot of water as everything gently simmers for many hours. BROTH on the other hand is usually the result of meat (not bones) such as chicken, pork, beef or fish which is simmered for about 1-2 hours. Both stock and broth are cooked by the addition of ODORI, mirepoix, which consist of onions, celery, carrots and some other herbs. We decided that what we made today, must be more of a STOCK since the bones of the entire chicken are simmered with the mirepoix. The result is a delicious, rich, dark liquid of goodness which presented itself with a gelatinous consistency when taken out of the refrigerator. Let's get started!

Supplies:

Ingredients:

2 kilos whole chicken with the bones
2 yellow onions cut in half
1 head of garlic cut in half
3 carrots peeled
3 celery stalks
2 bay leaves
1 bunch of parsley
3.5 liters cold water
Pepper to taste
Salt to taste

Directions:

Always make sure to clean the face of the oven before preheating it.
Preheat the The Mangiafuoco Home Gas Pizza Oven to 400°F - 200°C.
Cut the carrots and celery into chunks. Do not discard the leaves of the celery as they are packed with flavor.
Slice the garlic and onions in half. Leave the skin on the onions as they will infuse an extra deep color into the stock.
Drizzle a small amount of olive oil into the preheated pot. Place the onions and garlic face down into the hot pot and allow them to slightly caramelize.
Remove the backbone from the chicken and open the bird so it is flat. Doing this will allow the chicken to better fit in this particular pot. This process is not necessary if using a tall pot.
Arrange the chicken, the backbone as well as the neck around the onions and garlic.
Add the carrots, celery, bay leaves, whole parsley with stems, water, salt and pepper to the pot. Make sure to use COLD water. Since the chicken must be fully submerged at all times, it may be necessary once the liquid continues to simmer to add some hot water to the simmering broth every now and then.
Cover the pot with a lid and carefully place inside the preheated oven. Close the door of the oven and turn the damper on the chimney to a 45° angle in order to maintain the heat inside the oven chamber.
Bring the broth to a boil. Once it has come to a boil, lower the temperature of the oven to 180°-190°F - 82.8°-87.7°C. In order to cool down the temperature of the oven, turn the knob to a minimum and open up the damper on the chimney until it has cooled a bit.
Allow the broth to simmer inside the oven for about 2 hours. Skim off any of the foam or scum that forms on top of the liquid. During the first hour skim off the foam every 10 minutes, and in the second hour only twice. Scum is a denatured, flavorless protein. Since it is not appealing to the eye and causes the broth to become of a gray, unsightly color, regularly skim off any of the scum that forms on top of the liquid.
After 2 hours, carefully remove the pot from the oven.
Once the chicken stock has cooled, pour the rich liquid through a strainer. This flavorful and rich stock can immediately be used for many wonderful dishes, or stored in the refrigerator up to 4-5 days. The stock can also be frozen up to 8 months, or pressure canned up to a year. Enjoy!