Ah stock, one of those secret ingredients that make so many things* better, but which always seems like a pain to make. It takes planning ahead. It takes time. It takes bones, for goodness sake. But then, stock really is great stuff. I use it as a base for soups, stews, and chilis, sometimes when cooking beans or rice to make them extra rich, when braising all sorts of things. I even, sometimes, just heat it up with some added ginger or chili and have it for breakfast.

I’m making beef stock today, from stock bones I picked up at the farmers’ market**. It’s pretty simple:

• 3-6 lbs beef or veal*** bones
• 1-3 onions
• 2-4 carrots
• 3-6 stalks celery – optional if you don’t like this sort of thing
• other veggies if you have them kicking around, though no brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, kale, etc.) because they’re too strong
• maybe some garlic
• ~6 sprigs parsley, or just parsley stems
• some thyme, either ~6 fresh sprigs or ~1 tsp dried
• some peppercorns, ~1 tsp
• a splash of cider vinegar (~2 TBSP)
• ~1/4 cup tomato paste
• maybe a dried chili, if you like that sort of thing

If you have the time and inclination, roast the bones and vegetables at 400ºF or so for 20 to 30 minutes, turning once, until browned. Put everything in a pot and cover with water. (If you roasted the bones and veggies, be sure to scrape all the loving brown bits off your roasting pan into the pot as well. It helps to add some water to deglaze the pan.) Bring to a simmer****. Simmer forever – at least 4 hrs, though 12 hrs is lovely too. Add more water if needed to keep the bones covered, but otherwise ignore it. Strain. Store in fridge or freezer until you want to make soup (or have a lovely warming cup of broth or…).

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*Things which are mostly, but not exclusively soups

**Yay! Misty Brook! I’ve also gotten great bones from our awesome local butcher, MF Dulock.

***Yes, veal. Veal is a by-product of dairy, so even if I don’t eat it, it still exists. Misty Brook, and other great farms out there, raise theirs humanely.

****Try not to boil it, because that will make the stock cloudy. Try not to worry too much either. Cloudy stock is still delicious.