So, im getting some misc. bones from a lady i know from her steer for making beef broth. ive never made it before, only have read about it and wanted to try it soon. She wants to know how many lbs i want and i have know idea how many bones and other things it takes to make stock. i woudl like to do 2 gallons of stock. Will 10lbs do it ??? Thanks
How many LBS of Bones do i need to make Beef stock??
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dfr1973
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You can always freeze what bones don't fit in your stock pot for later stock-making.
Take whatever she is offering. You can use however many you want, and freeze the rest for next time. Take enough bones to fill your stockpot perhaps 1/3 to 1/2 full; put them in a roasting pan, and roast them at 400*, turning occasionally, until they are nicely browned. Put them into your stockpot, and add some water to the roasting pan to dissolve the brown bits - you may need to put the pan over a couple of burners on the stove to heat things up, and scrape the brown bits up (this is flavor, don't disregard it.) Pour it into the stockpot. Add, if you wish, some celery, carrots, onions or leeks, garlic, a teaspoon of peppercorns, and cover the whole lot with water (no salt, not yet). Bring it up to a boil, and immediately turn it down to a very low simmer (only an occasional bubble coming to the surface). Add a *glug* of vinegar (from 1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on whether you have a large pot going, or only a small one); this will help to dissolve more of the minerals out of the bones. Let it simmer for as long as you can - several hours at least, longer if you are around to watch it. You could also turn it off if you have to go away, and bring it back up to temperature when you are there again to watch it. The longer the better, within reason. Cool, strain, and freeze or can. Soooo much better than anything you can buy in the store. (If the bones are meaty that is all you need; if they are *just bones* without much meat you might want to add some stew meat - just brown it with the bones. Give the meat to the dog/chickens after the long cooking; it won't be worth using for anything else.) (Add salt, if needed, to whatever you are making with the stock, not to the stock itself. It is too easy to oversalt that way)
Marianne
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yes! Great info, thanks ORchick!
Very true.~gd said:
A less messy way would be to get your butcher to cut the long bones to 1" or 2" lengths before you take them home, if that is an option.
An old fashioned way of enjoying the flavor of marrow was to roast the bones as described, and use a knife to push out the marrow, and spread it on toast points.
In Germany they make small dumplings to put in soup, using the marrow as the fat. I can post a recipe if anyone is interested; I find them quite delicious.
True If you have leg bones, go out of your way to get the marrow it is well worth having. Joints and ribs aren't that hard to crack after they have been cooked. I used to get back bones but haven't seen them since Mad Cow disease became an issue.~gd
