Friday, February 25, 2011

Stock Part Three: Straining, cooling and storing

Ugh- now here is a tough spot: Straining. I do not have the biggest kitchen in the world, in fact two people in my kitchen makes it crowded.  Making straining a pot of stock a little tricky i.e. elbow room!  Get another pot (liquids will not cool in plastic as it is an insulator).  Plop a colander or strainer into the empty pot(you can use cheesecloth here if you feel you need to, but don't run out and get any if you don't have any) and carefully pour.


Cooling a stock quickly is paramount to prevent contamination. Another reason for cooling it down quickly is that when you stick it in your fridge/freezer it doesn't warm up or melt anything you would like to remain chilly.  If your sink is relatively deep, you are in luck. Put the pot in your sink (bathtubs are great for this too, but if you're like me and have a bathtub on your second floor, its not really recommended to carry up a giant pot of hot liquid up the stairs, a large cooler would work nicely!). Make sure you plug your sink! If you have tons of ice lying around, good! Put the ice around the pot and start running the water. Do NOT let the ice bath rise above the level of stock in your pot or it will bounce around your sink. Then let the ice bath do its thang. Check the temperature ideally it's temp should be around 40 degrees F, and stir it every now and then. Yes, you can stir it to your hearts content now!

Once it's cooled, you can store it in plastic containers with tight lids. This stuff freezes really well and will last a few months in the freezer. Date it and label it to save confusion later.

No comments:

Post a Comment