Beef Stock & Consomé

Stock

Back to the basics, like chicken stock, beef stock can open up a variety of options for your dishes. You can clarify the stock to make a consomé and use it for soup, you can use it as a base for braises, several classic french sauces, and you can reduce it further to make glace and demi-glace.  The quality of the meat and bones really matter here – the flavors become so concentrated that high quality beef and bones will yield a high quality both.

Making beef stock is an art of patience. Extracting all the nutrients and flavors from the dense bones will take 5-8 hours of slow simmering. If you use the biggest pot you own, or better, purchase a large stock pot, you can make large amounts which hold great in the freezer for months.

Ingredients

5 lb
mixture of bones (marrow, knuckle, oxtail, and short rib bones are all good for this)
3
carrots
3
celery sticks
2
medium yellow onions
4
cloves of garlic
1.5 tbs
tomato pureé
1 bouquet
garni of thyme, rosemary, and 2 bay leaves
To taste
salt
To taste
white pepper

Instructions

  1. Start by baking your bones in the oven at 450 degrees F. Once the tips of any beef on the bones begin to roast, take them out.
  2. Place your bones in the pot and add the tomato pureé. Fill with cold water and bring to a simmer. Skim off any foam that rises to the top as well as any fat that begins to rise.
    1. Here it is important to use cold water as the temperature will shock the fat in the bones and allow you to skim it off.
  3. In the same roasting pan that you roasted the bones, add the vegetables and garlic in half inch dice. Roast until the edges of the onions begin to burn.
  4. Add the vegetables to your simmering stock.
  5. Add half a cup of water to your roasting pan and return to the oven for 10 minutes. Take it out and scrape off the fond from the pan. Add this juice to your stock.
    1. This is one of the most important steps as the fond holds an immense amount of flavor. Chefs in high end restaurants have been fired for less than wasting fond.
  6. Add salt and pepper to your broth and continue to simmer on low for at least 4 hours. If too much liquid evaporates, refill with more water.
  7. Strain the stock through a sieve and cool overnight in the fridge so that the fat congeals at the top. The next day, scrape off the fat from the top.
    1. Note that at the point before cooling, the stock is ready to be used if desired. Simply correct for salt and pepper.
  8. If you wish to clarify into a consomé:
    1. Whip two egg whites and add to your stock. The stock should be warmed to around 100 degrees F beforehand.
    2. Bring to a light simmer and allow for a raft to form on the top of your stock. Allow this to simmer gently for 20-25 minutes. Pass through a sieve when done.
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