Homemade Chicken Feet Stock

You'll never realize how bland store-bought stock actually is until you make your own. Turns the simplest soup recipes into gourmet meals. Note: this recipe uses chicken feet in place of bones. The result is a stock that is more rich in flavor than any bone stock I've ever had. But all that collagen from the feet makes the stock a gelatin when cooled below room temp. So don't panic when you open your fridge and find chicken jelly.

• Preparation Time: 60 mins
• Cooking Time: 8 hr
• Total Time: 9 hr
• Calories: 48 Calories

Ingredients

• salt to taste
• ½ cup chopped celery
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
• 2 cups chopped white onion
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed
• 2 large bay leaves
• 4 lbs chicken feet
• 2 quarts water, or as needed
• 2 medium leeks
• ⅓ cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
• 2 sprigs fresh marjoram

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add chicken feet and boil for 10 minutes. This will soften them enough that you can chop off the claws from each paw. This opening is where the collagen melts out of which gives the stock its richness. Strain feet through a sieve, chop off claws, and set aside.

Step 2

Pour a layer of olive oil in the same pot and heat over medium-low heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook until softened and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute an additional 30 seconds. Add feet back to the pot and fill with water until about 2 inches of water stand above the highest feet in the pot.

Step 3

Discard dark green portions of the leeks or set aside for another use. Slice up the light green portions; each stalk should yield 7 to 8 slices. Add to the pot.

Step 4

Combine parsley, peppercorns, thyme, marjoram, bay leaves, and rosemary on top of a piece of cheesecloth. Tie cheesecloth up with twine into a spice bag, leaving a long string. Tie the end of the string to a pot handle (for easy retrieval later) and drop spice bag into the pot.

Step 5

Increase heat to high and bring stock to a rolling boil. Reduce temperature to low and simmer, without stirring, for about 8 hours, adding more water if level becomes too low.

Step 6

After 8 hours (or the next morning), drain the stock through a colander into another pot to remove large solids. Clean the first pot. Lay a piece of cheesecloth over a fine mesh strainer. Pour the stock through this setup and into the clean pot to remove any fine particles. Cool to room temperature.

Step 7

Cover and move to refrigerator to cool completely, 3 to 4 hours. Remove the layer of fat that will congeal on top of the stock with a slotted spoon. Taste and adjust salt level. Use within a few days or freeze.