How do you roast the bones without burning them?

You roasted the bones waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long.  Next time, try 20 minutes at 425F. 

When I make chicken stock, I like to use one carcass worth of roasted bones to a whole chicken (which may be parted).  I also like to add extra wing tips, feet, combs, and necks if they're available.

Start the carcass and raw chicken together.  Simmer, and skim until it doesn't create any more scum.  Remove the chicken pieces as soon as the meat is barely but completely poached.  Meanwhile allow the carcass to continue to simmer.

Allow the the pieces to cool just enough to handle, strip them, discard the skin, reserve the meat for another purpose (pot pie, enciladas, etc.), and return the newly cleaned bones to the stock pot.  Skim again if necessary, and add the aromatics and a bunch of parsley.  If you're using other herbs as well, you may want to use them in the form of a bouquet garni.

If you keep the aromatics out of the pot until all of the scum is gone, it won't stick to them and cloud the stock as they cook.  It's one of those little, important things people forget to tell you, that makes the difference between quality and average.

If desired, you may roast the aromatics until they develop some color before adding them.  If you want to keep the stock's final color light, don't roast.  If you want to keep it very light (a "blanc"), use parsnips instead of carrots.

Try and remember that stock is brewed more than it's cooked.  Be gentle with the temperature.  All you need is enough heat to extract the flavor from the ingredients.  If it helps you to think of it as an infusion, do so.  Don't be any rougher with it than you would be making tea for a lady.

Speaking of which, it's not "camp coffee" and you don't need egg shells.  If you're going for ultimate clarity as for a consomme, you might well try an egg white raft, but that's a different thing. 

After the aromatics and carcass have simmered to tastelessness, remove the bones, strain the vegetables out, and return the stock to the pot.  If you like, you can press the mass of vegetables with the back of a spoon to get all of their essence into the pot.

Reduce the stock at a simmer until your desired concentration is reached. That should take about four to six hours from the time you first put the chicken and bones in the pot.

Either (a) allow the stock to cool settle and defat by skimming the top (repeatedly) with a spoon; or (b) chill and remove as much fat as you like when it solidifies.  Stock cools much faster in several small vessels than in one big one. 

Reserve all of the removed fat for another purpose, frying potato pancakes for instance.

Hope this helps,

BDL

 

Making some chicken stock today, so, timely advice BDL, thank you.  I've roasted off some carcasses and then some veg - onions, celery, carrots, the usual suspects.  Have had the carcasses started in cold filtered water brought to the simmer  to skim off for about an hour now, so ready to add the roast veg.  I prefer a brown chicken stock for home use, but that's just me.

Will keep it with vegies in for a while, say next 4 hours, then strain and reduce.  I like to chill it down quickly and just take the fat cap off once it's solid. 

Sometimes, if I'm not careful, there will be some impurities ( ok little gray speckles), at the bottom, but once I've got the fat cap off, I just take out the gellied stock until I reach the speckly base.  This gets mixed with dog bikkies as a treat for the dog /img/vbsmilies/smilies//smile.gif

Love the end result. /img/vbsmilies/smilies//smile.gif

 

It's rather uncommon to roast chickenbones to make stock or fond, but there's no law against it. It is usually done for fonds made of vealbones, game etc., but not for chicken.

The simplest way -and cheapest- to make excellent chickenstock is to use whole chickens. Put chicken in your stockpot, cover with COLD water and quickly bring to a boil for about 2 minutes or so. Now, drain that cookingwater. It contains a lot of impurities. Freshen the chicken under cold running water.

Now start making the stock by covering the chicken again with COLD water and bring gently to a simmer. Add aromates such as onion, peppercorns, bayleaf, celery, parcely stalks only, leaks, carrot... All roughly chopped. A very small amount of salt is allowed, but I never salt it, as it may become too salty when reduced. Let simmer around 90 minutes, no cooking=no bubbles! Time is not critical, 120 or more minutes is still very OK.

Decant the stock, use the meat for other preparations (vol-au-vent, risotto, chickensalad with a little mayo...). You could put the liquid on the stove again to reduce a little; the fond will become more gelatinous and solid when cooled.

Let the stock cool outside the fridge so it stays liquid. Gently decant again and get rid of the bottompart, usually around 2cm, which contains also some ugly bits.

You can use only chickenlegs, no problem. I also made stock from the bones of roasted chicken or chickenlegs. These bones are somewhat softened up, but not darkened since they are surrounded by meat in the oven.

 

Quetex, make the stock as described, get chicken and veggies out after cookingtime. Then reduce some more; in this final cookingstage, without chicken and veggies, you can go to real cooking temperature; the flavor will simply intensify. When cooled it will solidify a little caused by the gelatine.