What is the secret to making broth gel???? - Page 2

[mbravebird]

Originally Posted by snowbunny

The key to a getting a solid gel is to use a whole fresh bird, preferably with feet. Allow it to sit in slightly acidified cold water for about a half hour, then bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to a slow simmer. Don't cook for too long or too high a temperature because doing so will prevent a solid gel. Allow it to set up in the fridge, then you can boil the chicken a second time to extract more minerals - this can be a long simmer and you'll simmer it until the bones, when cooled, crumble in your fingertips.

Yes, I came on here to add this too. Since this thread was originally posted (last summer??), there seems to have been some consensus reached that a very very long simmer, like some of us like to do to get the minerals, breaks down the gelatin in the broth, which is why even those of us who use feet with the long simmer are still just getting a sloppy gel.

I love this idea about doing a shorter simmer to extract the gelatin, pouring it off, then re-simmering the bones for longer to extract more minerals in new liquid. I assume you'd then just combine the two? That would be a great way to get more broth out of a bird, too.

[mouso]

So when I roasted a chicken yesterday I saved the pan juices. Now in the fridge they have separated into two layer- a fat and a gelatin layer.
Should I throw that gelatin layer into the pot when I make the stock?

Thanks!

[philomom]

I honestly don't care whether I get a gel or not. Saying that, I have gotten a gel the last three times I made the stock. I use three leftover carcasses and I break the bones with a hammer. I add four teaspoons lemon juice. Some leftover veggie scraps from the bottom of the veggie bin. I don't use celery.. my family doesn't like the flavor. I cook it all in the crock pot on low all day and take it up just before bedtime having started it at breakfast.

[velcromom]

If the bones are soft enough to crush with your fingers, the broth has the good stuff whether it gels or not. I have to concur that too much water can inhibit gel. Fill up the pot with bones then fill with water to the top of the bones. Also make sure you don't have a lot of meat on the bones or your bone to water ratio will be low.

I've made broth with feet only. It has the silkiest texture in soup. But I have never ever tasted an unseasoned broth right out of the pot that I thought tasted "good" in the sense that a bowl of chicken soup tastes good. It provides an amazing flavor base to build your dish on, but it is not something I'd sip a mug of without seasoning it up at least a little.