Chicken stock rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 2,749 recipes to cook with it.
Key Points
The all-purpose stock: tastes of chicken without taking over, so it works in almost any dish.
Backs, necks, wings, and a few feet give the most gelatin and body.
Bare simmer only; a hard boil turns stock cloudy and greasy.
Two to four hours is plenty; chicken does not need beef's long simmer.
Keeps four days chilled or about three months frozen; save the fat cap as schmaltz.
What is chicken stock?
Chicken stock is the savory liquid you get by simmering chicken bones and aromatic vegetables in water until they give up their flavor and body. It is the most-reached-for stock in any kitchen, and on this site it shows up in close to 3,000 recipes.
Soups, risottos, pan sauces, braises, a pot of plain rice: chicken stock is the quiet backbone under most of them.
What makes it the workhorse is balance. It tastes clearly of chicken without shouting, so it slips into almost any dish without taking over. A good batch sets to a soft jelly in the fridge, the visible sign that you pulled enough gelatin out of the bones.
For how stock differs from broth in general, and why you never let a stockpot hit a rolling boil, see the parent stock page. This page is about what makes the chicken version worth doing.
What Goes in the Pot
Bones do the work here. A leftover roast carcass is the classic starting point, but the parts richest in collagen give you the most body: backs, necks, and wings.
Want a stock that sets like firm jelly? Add a few chicken feet. They are almost pure skin and cartilage over bone, which is exactly the connective tissue that turns into gelatin.
Raw bones make a cleaner, fresher stock than a stripped carcass alone. Many cooks use both: the carcass for thrift, a pound of wings or backs for richness.
Round it out with a coarse mirepoix, plus a bay leaf and a handful of parsley stems. Figure roughly two parts onion to one each of carrot and celery, all in big rough chunks. The vegetables only need to give up flavor, so they never have to look pretty.
Roast First, or Not
Most chicken stock is left pale, sometimes called white stock. You drop everything in the pot raw, which gives a light color and a clean, neutral taste that goes anywhere.
Roast the bones and vegetables first and you get brown chicken stock: deeper, nuttier, a little sweeter from the browning. It is worth the extra half hour when the stock is the main event, like a poultry French onion soup or a serious gravy.
For everyday cooking, pale stock is the sensible default.
Simmering It Down
Bring the pot up slowly and never let it boil hard. A hard boil churns the fat and fine particles back into the liquid and turns it cloudy and greasy. Hold it at a bare simmer, just a few bubbles breaking the surface.
In the first twenty minutes a gray foam rises. Skim it off. That foam is coagulated protein, and skimming it early is the difference between a clean stock and a muddy one.
Chicken stock does not need the marathon time that beef bones do. Two to four hours pulls plenty of flavor and gelatin. Past about five hours the return drops off and the taste can go flat.
Strain it, then chill it. The fat rises and sets into a firm cap you can lift off in one piece. That golden fat is schmaltz, and it is too good to throw out. Save it to roast potatoes or to start your next pot of soup.
You can taste what good stock does in a long braise like Coq Au Vin à la Slow Cooker, or carrying a whole meal in Leftover Chicken & Dumpling Casserole. It even forms the base of a white chili like Neiman Marcus Chili Blanco.
Stock Versus Broth, Chicken Edition
People use the two words loosely, and for chicken the line is especially blurry.
Stock leans on bones, so it is richer in gelatin and usually left unsalted to stay flexible. Broth leans on meat, so it comes out thinner and gets seasoned for sipping on its own. For cooking, unsalted stock gives you the most control: you salt the finished dish, not the stock.
Buying and Storing
If you buy it, reach for cartons labeled stock rather than broth when you want body, and choose low-sodium or unsalted so a reduction does not turn salty. Bouillon cubes and paste bases work in a pinch but run salty and one-note, so go easy.
Homemade keeps about four days in the fridge. For longer storage, freeze it.
Pour cooled stock into freezer bags laid flat, or into an ice cube tray for small amounts you can drop straight into a hot pan. Frozen stock holds its quality for around three months. Leave headroom in any container, since the liquid expands as it freezes.
Types of chicken stock
Specific kinds of chicken stock and the recipes that use them.
Low-salt chicken broth is ordinary chicken broth with most of the sodium left out, sold as "low sodium," "less sodium," or "no salt added." It tastes of chicken and aromatics but stops short of the salty hit a regular carton delivers.
The point is control. When the broth is barely seasoned, you decide how salty the finished dish ends up, instead of the can deciding for you.
Why Reach for Low-Salt
A standard cup of regular chicken broth can carry 800 to 900 mg of sodium, often more, which is a third or more of a day's limit before you have added a single other thing.
That matters most when broth is the bulk of the liquid, as in a risotto, a braise, or a soup you simmer down. Reduce a salted broth and the salt concentrates with it, so a sauce that started fine can turn briny by the time it thickens.
Low-salt broth sidesteps that. It is the right pick anywhere you reduce the liquid or layer in other salty things like soy sauce, cheese, olives, or cured meat.
Taste before you add salt. Low-salt does not mean no salt, so season at the end in small additions and stop when it tastes right.
Substitutes
Regular chicken broth works if you cut or skip the recipe's added salt and taste as you go. Unsalted homemade stock is the best stand-in and brings more body.
A low-sodium bouillon cube or paste dissolved in water also fills in, as does plain water with a little extra seasoning if you have nothing else. Vegetable broth covers it in a pinch, though it loses the chicken backbone.
Buying & Storage
Read the nutrition panel, not the front of the box, since "low sodium" is regulated (140 mg or less per serving) but "less sodium" only means less than the regular version, which can still be a lot.
Unopened cartons keep for months in the pantry. Once opened, refrigerate and use within about four to five days, the same as any cooked broth; freeze the rest in measured portions if you will not finish it.
Learn to make homemade tortellini with creamy goat cheese and scallion filling, served in savory chicken broth. Simple sophistication in a bowl. This comforting dish features tender homemade tortellini filled with goat cheese and fresh scallions, served in a warm, flavorful chicken broth. Perfect for a cozy dinner, it combines delicate pasta with a rich, savory filling, finished with a sprinkle of Parmesan and scallions.
This simple, creamy, comforting chowder combines tender potatoes, sweet corn kernels, and cheese in a lightly spiced milk-based broth. It’s a quick, hearty soup perfect for chilly days, ready in about 30 minutes and serving 4 as a main dish.
Discover this easy sautéed Brussels sprouts with pecans recipe: caramelized onions, garlic, and a hint of lemon for a quick, healthy side dish bursting with nutty crunch and subtle sweetness—perfect for weeknight dinners or holiday meals like "simple Brussels sprouts side dish ideas" or "healthy vegetable recipes with nuts."
Silky broccoli soup purees fresh broccoli with sauteed leeks, potatoes, and chicken broth, finished with half-and-half for a creamy, vivid green bowl. Bright and vegetable-forward.
Creamy tomato and orange soup with fresh tomatoes, orange juice, orange zest and a swirl of cream. A British-style soup that's bright, velvety and full of citrus warmth.
This chilled tomato carrot soup blends fresh tomatoes and sweet carrots with basil, thyme, and a whisper of nutmeg into a silky cold soup for hot summer days. Simmered, pureed, then served ice-cold with a splash of milk for creamy body.
Curried pumpkin soup with sweet pumpkin puree, golden sauteed onions, warm curry powder, and a swirl of half-and-half. A silky, autumn-spiced soup garnished with pepitas or chives.
Chilled carrot soup blended with orange juice, fresh nutmeg and chicken broth. A bright, low-calorie warm-weather starter served cold with an orange slice and mint. Six ingredients, blender-easy.
A very simple recipe for a classic, which helps you to get warm in the winter (ok, I mean when it is getting 4° Celsius in the night in Southern California). The number of servings is accurate when you have it as a meal - as a starter it should serve way more people.
I did not list any spices, as I usually have self made chicken broth which is already pretty tasty and spicy, sweetness comes from the onions and the white wine balances it. For bread and cheese - don't think about any fancy, old dry bread is good and any cheese which melts. The onions are king when it comes to taste.
Ovenproof crock bowls are very nice for final preparation and serving the soup.
Hot and sour mushroom soup with sliced mushrooms, bamboo shoots, rice vinegar, and white pepper, ladled over Japanese soba noodles. A 30-minute lighter take on the Chinese takeout classic.
Avgolemono is the classic Greek lemon-egg rice soup, a silky chicken broth thickened with whisked eggs and fresh lemon juice. Light, restorative, and ready in 35 minutes.
Fresh tomato soup with a bouquet garni of parsley, bay leaf, celery, thyme, and marjoram, pureed smooth with caramelized onion and a butter roux. Topped with sour cream and fresh dill.
Creamy prosciutto and green pea risotto finished with Parmesan, fresh basil, and a splash of cream. Salty cured ham and sweet peas make this Italian rice dish rich and satisfying.
Creamy winter squash soup with finely chopped hazelnuts, onions, and a splash of sherry. The nuts add nutty body without any dairy thickener. A simple autumn first course.
Aunt Ann's creamy potato soup: waxy potatoes simmered with leek, onion, and celery in herb-scented broth, then finished with cream. Part of the soup gets mashed for a thick, rustic body. Pure comfort.
Creamy tomato soup made from scratch with ten ripe tomatoes, onion, thyme, and basil, blended silky and finished with cream, milk, and a swirl of butter. A rich, homemade bowl made for grilled cheese.
Buttery broccoli soup simmers chopped broccoli with sauteed onions, chicken broth, and rich evaporated milk for a creamy 6-ingredient soup. Puree for smooth, leave chunky for rustic.
Yummy bacon-topped cheese soup is a microwave-friendly cheddar soup loaded with bacon, celery, carrot, onion, and green bell pepper, finished with crisp bacon on top.
Onion and potato soup built on sweet butter-cooked white onions, shredded potato, garlic, and prosciutto, finished with grated Romano. A rustic Italian-style soup ready inside an hour.
Cream of pumpkin soup with coriander, curry powder, and a finishing drizzle of walnut oil. Smooth, golden, and ready in an hour using fresh or canned pumpkin.
Creamy corn and bell pepper chowder: a low-fat skim-milk chowder with sweet corn, red bell peppers, scallions, and shallots. Pureed corn gives it body without heavy cream.
Velvety creamy tomato onion soup made with pureed fresh tomatoes, sauteed onions, basil, and silken tofu for a dairy-free, high-fiber bowl. A comforting homemade tomato soup that simmers in under 45 minutes with a silky, rich finish.
Cream of pumpkin soup with fresh or canned pumpkin pureed with onions, celery, garlic, and thyme, finished with cottage cheese for silky body. Lighter take on a Thanksgiving classic.
Cream of carrot soup made the classic way: onions sweated in butter, a quick roux for body, then carrots simmered in stock, blended and strained silky-smooth, and finished with cream. Velvety, elegant, and simple.
Curried squash soup made with pre-cooked butternut squash, garlic, curry powder, and chicken stock. A 40-minute warming bowl topped with sour cream and scallions for color and tang.
Easy broccoli cheddar soup made from scratch with a quick butter-flour roux, milk, chicken broth, broccoli florets, and sharp cheddar. A creamy 25-minute weeknight soup recipe.
Mom's spiced carrot soup purees tender carrots into a silky bowl warmed with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and a whisper of cayenne. Healthy, low-fat, and on the table in 30 minutes.
Microwave ginger squash soup with butternut, fresh ginger, orange juice and zest, finished with nutmeg. An elegant fall starter ready in 30 minutes, no stovetop required.
Hungarian white tomato soup (Feher Paradicsomleves) made from just three ingredients: ripe tomatoes, strong chicken broth, and salt. The tomatoes simmer whole, then are strained out to leave a crystal-clear, golden broth.
Herbed tomato soup microwaves a tomato sauce base with sauteed onion, basil, and thyme into a 15-minute single-serve soup. Low fat, low calorie, served with Parmesan croutons.
Creamy cauliflower soup made light with low-fat milk and a flour roux instead of cream. Bright lemon juice, a whisper of nutmeg, and pureed florets give it body without the heaviness.
Fresh tomato soup made with whole Roma tomatoes, celery, onion, and chicken broth, simmered and strained for a clean, bright bowl. Topped with cool yogurt. Gluten-free, low-fat, ready in 45 minutes.
Pumpkin soup with coconut cream and fresh ginger, brightened with lemon juice and a pinch of chili. Pureed silky-smooth and finished with chopped coriander. Thai-leaning fall comfort that works hot or chilled.
Japanese soba noodles in ginger-miso chicken broth with shiitake mushrooms, gai lan, and fresh cilantro. Restaurant-quality slurpable noodle soup ready in 40 minutes at home.
Southern corn chowder with fresh-scraped corn pulp, bacon, potatoes, tomatoes, and a bouquet garni. Cream-finished, brightened with cayenne. A simmered farmhouse chowder.
Miniature pumpkin soup served in hollowed roasted pumpkin shells with sage, onion, and Parmesan. Dramatic individual-portion fall starter that doubles as edible tableware.
Pumpkin soup gently spiced with whole cloves, sweetened with honey, and finished with cream. Smooth, autumn-bright puréed soup that holds up overnight for make-ahead dinner parties.
A rustic American cassoulet with navy beans, browned chicken legs, crispy bacon, and smoked sausage baked in a tomato and herb broth. Hearty French-inspired comfort food for 4 to 6.
