If you are like me the idea of food waste probably makes you a bit anxious. Living in the middle of a huge city I don’t have the option to compost my food waste. But one simple thing I do is save my vegetable scraps in a freezer bag. Every time I peel a carrot, cut the ends off of celery or finish all but the stems of a bunch of parsley I add it to the bag. The next time I roast a chicken or have an abundance of chicken bones I throw it all in a slow cooker and get to making a very simple, nutritious batch of chicken stock. This is so easy to do and the result is a much more decadent stock than you could get in the store, and it is a sodium free option from the broths available. Plus you get the wonderful smell of a simmering stock filling your home.

Makes Approximately 2 Quarts

Ingredients

Bones From 1 Chicken -wings also work well, roasted for better flavor.

Vegetable Scraps- should equal to approximately:

2 Onions

2 Carrots- skin on chopped roughly

4 Celery Stalks- chopped

2 Bay Leaves

1 Bunch of Parsley Stems

Possible Additions: Garlic Cloves, Tomato Skins, Dried Mushrooms, Thyme, Whole Peppercorns. Some people avoid using garlic because you may not want garlic in the recipe for which the stock will be used. You also want to avoid strong herbs like dill or tarragon which will overtake the flavor of the stock.

Method

In a large slow cooker add the chicken bones, vegetables and herbs. Cover with cold water. Cook on low setting for 8-10 hours up to 24 hours. The benefit of using a slow cooker is there is very little water waste, therefore you get an extremely savory, concentrated and flavorful stock.

After the stock has cooled use a strainer to strain the liquid into a mixing bowl. For a clearer stock you can strain a second time through cheesecloth.

Use immediately, store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for later use.

Now your vegetable scraps have lived a second life as a golden nutritious stock and in my situation I pick out the bones and the bits of chicken and set them out for the street animals, although I recognize not everyone can do that. Unless you want raccoons knocking on your door for seconds.