I love having homemade chicken stock stored in the freezer for quick weeknight meals. I roast a whole chicken at least once a month, and once dinner is cleared, the bones go straight into the slow cooker. After our garlic and rosemary roast chicken last week, what started as a Friday night dinner turned into rich, delicious stock by morning.
Using the leftover bones and vegetables to create stock feels resourceful and simple, and honestly a little satisfying. There is something deeply comforting about knowing there’s homemade stock tucked away in the freezer, ready for soups, sauces, or a cozy mug when someone in the house starts sniffling.
What I Love About This Recipe
I don’t use an exact recipe every time because it all depends on what vegetables or even what meat I have available. That’s part of the fun. I’ve seen several homemade stock recipes that have given me great ideas, and over time I’ve made it my own.
One year after Thanksgiving, my husband’s uncle and I stood in the kitchen with the leftover turkey bones and just started tossing things into the pot. We added whatever we had around, even bits of leftover sides. It turned into the richest, most flavorful turkey stock. That’s when it really clicked for me that this isn’t a precise recipe. It’s more of a method.
You can create a different version every time. I experiment with different herbs and vegetables. It all goes into the slow cooker and simmers overnight, and by morning the house smells warm and savory.
A Quick Note: Stock or Bone Broth?
Traditionally, stock is made from bones and simmered for several hours as a base for soups and sauces. Bone broth usually refers to a longer cooking time and a focus on extracting collagen and nutrients.
Since this cooks for 10 to 14 hours with a splash of apple cider vinegar, it develops the body and richness many people associate with bone broth. Technically it’s stock. Practically speaking, it’s deeply flavorful and nourishing. Call it whatever you like.
Recipe Credit
I’ve been making homemade stock for years, but the recipe in Natasha’s Kitchen by Natasha Kravchuk is the closest to my base method. She shares instructions for stovetop, slow cooker, and Instant Pot versions, which makes it accessible no matter how you prefer to cook. Check it out here.
A Note on My Recipe (Cook-What-You-Have)
What I used tonight
- Bones from 1 roasted chicken
- Enough cold, filtered water to cover the bones
- 1 splash apple cider vinegar
- 6 black peppercorns
- 1½ yellow onions, halved (leftovers from the fridge)
- 2 carrots, scrubbed and cut into thirds
- 2 celery stalks, cut into thirds
- 1 bay leaf
- A handful of chopped fresh parsley
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 2–3 garlic cloves, smashed and unpeeled
How I made it
In your slow cooker, add the chicken bones, peppercorns, and apple cider vinegar. Pour in enough cold, filtered water to fully cover everything. Set the heat to low and cook for 10–14 hours.
Ideally, a few hours through cooking, add the vegetables and herbs. Let everything continue to cook overnight. This helps extract the nutrients from the bones by letting them cook first. Many times I just dump it all into a pot and heat it overnight.
In the morning, strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Let it cool to room temperature before storing.
Transfer to a Stasher bag for easy freezing, or a Ball glass jars if you plan to keep it in the refrigerator.
Notes From My Kitchen
- You can adjust this recipe however you like, as long as you keep enough water to cover everything. This is not a precise science. Use what you have.
- One of my favorite surprises was adding a lemon, which worked beautifully when I later used the stock in my Go-To Chicken Orzo Soup.
- To check if the stock is ready, the bones should be soft enough to break easily.
- Once strained and slightly cooled, I pour the stock into Stasher bags for easy freezer storage. When I’m ready to use it, I take out a frozen bag and place it directly into a pot with a little water, warming it gently until the stock melts back into liquid.
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