Put the leftover bones and skin from a chicken carcass into a stock pot. Add up to 2 pounds of chicken feet if you have them.
Add vegetables like carrots, celery, and onions if you have them. These add some flavor, but if you don’t have them, just go with the chicken parts. Vegetable scraps are fine.
Add salt and pepper if desired.
Cover the chicken parts and vegetables with water.
Cover and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce to simmer and leave for 4-6 hours.*
Cool a bit before straining out the chicken parts and vegetables – enough so the steam won’t overwhelm you or burn your face as you’re pouring.
You can use the stock immediately or store in a jar in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks. A fat layer will develop on top. This will help preserve the stock. When you are ready to use the stock, you can choose to either discard or incorporate the fat layer. If you want to make a large batch, you can also can or freeze the stock for later use.
* You can also make stock in a crock pot. Heat up to high and then reduce the temperature to low for 12-24 hours. If you have an Instant Pot, set the Manual setting to 120. We sometimes run it another hour after that.
