Homemade Vegetable Stock: A Great Base for all the Soups You’ll be Making this Winter!

I have been making my own vegetable stock for the last couple of years. Basically, I compile my the leftover vegetable odds and ends (onion and garlic skins, carrot ends and peels, celery butts, etc) and whatever I have sitting in the freezer that I know I just won’t use (like one piddly little corn on the cob, or stir fry mix that doesn’t actually have enough left to make a full meal) in a big gallon freezer bag. I add to this stockpile (har har) regularly, and when I get a full bag that means it’s time to make stock! It’s hard for me to sum up all the benefits of this because there are so many. First of all, for people who don’t compost, you are saving these scraps from the trash can (at least temporarily, they will eventually go in as vegetable mush, I guess). Still, for those of you who do compost, after making and straining the stock the veggies can still be composted, of course. For those of you who vermicompost, it’s a lot easier for worms to begin to break down this cooked vegetable mush than if you were to just throw the veggies in raw. Rather than using store-bought vegetable stocks, which have the pitfalls of both packaging waste (which sometimes can’t be recycled) and more sodium and preservatives than most of us would like, you are saving money and using something you already have on hand.  Vegetable stock is used to make everything from rice dishes to soup, and I find myself making around a batch of this stuff every month or two.  That adds up to a lot of money still in my pocket and stuff not in a landfill.

Some things to keep in mind:

• Strong-flavored vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, and asparagus should be used in moderation because they are, well, strong-flavored and can quickly steal the show.  Unless you are making broccoli soup; in that case, feel free to knock yourself out.
• Starchy vegetables like corn and potatoes should be used in moderation as well.  In fact, I never use anything potato in my broth, and only rarely do I throw a corn cob or two in.  Any more, and you risk having a cloudy broth, and no one wants that!
• Make sure you clean all your veggies pretty well before you chop and freeze them, since washing frozen vegetables is probably kind of hard and weird.

Freezer bags full of frozen vegetable odds and ends.

How to make homemade stock:

• Fill a large stock pot with cold water.
• Add your vegetables plus salt, pepper, and herbs of your choice (a couple of bay leaves, and some oregano, basil, or thyme are pretty sure to work out well).
• Bring to a rapid boil then cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.
• Once it has cooled, separate the vegetable mush from the broth with a cheesecloth and a colander.  Stock freezes very well; I like to divide mine into freezer bags of 2 cup increments and stack them in my freezer.

Previously mentioned odds and ends simmering on the stove.

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