Recipes

Stocks

& Soups

Introduction

To Cooking

Why make your own stock when the grocery

store shelves overflow with convenient substi-

tutes? Many people feel the only way to make a

good soup is to start with the freshest and most

natural ingredients. When you take the care to

make your own stocks, you will know just how

much salt was added (or not added) and you

can remove much of the fat. The pressure cook-

er is the ideal tool for preparing stocks, turning a

venture which used to take hours into one which

takes minutes.

There are some very simple guidelines for

preparing stocks. You need a meat source

(unless you are making a vegetable stock), aro-

matic vegetables and herbs. The meat source

for a stock can be the trimmings and bones from

beef, pork (uncured), veal, lamb, fowl or fish.

Because the temperatures reach above the boil-

ing point in a pressure cooker, the connective

tissue, or collagen, is converted into gelatin

quicker due to the high temperatures. No longer

will it be necessary to simmer a pot of ingredi-

ents on the back burner of the stove for hours.

Beef bones can also be oven-browned before

starting if a deep, rich brown color is desired for

the stock. Any inexpensive cut of beef along with

a beef shank cut crosswise or a piece of short

ribs will produce favorable results. For a chicken

stock it is wise to save otherwise unusable parts

(backs, necks and feet) in the freezer to have on

hand. When making a fish stock the head works

well, along with the carcass of any non-oily

Making stock is so simple, and such an important part of great soups,

sauces and gravies.