Stock

01How it works

Bones, collagen, gelatin

Bones, cartilage and connective tissue are rich in collagen. Hours of gentle heat, helped by a little acid, convert that collagen into gelatin — the same thing that thickens the liquid and makes it coat your tongue. A good stock wiggles like soft jelly when cold; that jiggle is the gelatin you extracted.

Heat is the whole game. Hold it at a bare simmer and it stays clear and clean. Let it boil and the fat emulsifies into the liquid — now it is permanently cloudy and tastes muddy. There is no fixing a boiled stock after the fact.

02Stock vs broth

Bones versus meat

The short version: stock is built on bones and has body from gelatin; broth is built on meat, stays light, and rarely gels because meat holds far less collagen. Stock is a foundation you cook with; broth is light enough to sip on its own.

Full comparison: Stock vs Broth →

03How to do it right

Cold start, bare simmer, skim

Start the bones in cold water so proteins rise slowly as a skimmable foam — that is what keeps the stock clear. Bring it only to a bare simmer, a bubble every few seconds, never a boil, and skim the scum and fat as it collects.

Roast the bones first for a deeper colour and flavour; it also sets the surface proteins so they cloud the liquid less. Add vegetables late — about the last hour — because past that they break down and muddy it. Leave the stock unsalted: it will concentrate when you cook with it later, so you season the final dish, not the stock.

04Common mistakes

Why it turned cloudy and dull

• Boiling it. Emulsified fat — cloudy, greasy, muddy, and unfixable.
• Not skimming. The scum you leave in is the murk you taste.
• Vegetables in too early. Hours in, they collapse and turn the stock bitter and dull.
• Salting the stock. It concentrates as you reduce later — season the dish, not the base.

→Recipes built on stock