Stock vs. Broth

As everyone is aware this winter of 2015, it's as cold as fuck outside. It's no surprise the current bone broth craze is taking off, who doesn't like a bowl of something hot and tasty when it's freezing out. When you read the article, you'll see the terms broth and stock are used interchangeably. Both are liquids flavored with vegetables, meat scraps, and bones, and are used as the base for soups, and sauces. You may be surprised to learn that the two are not the same.

Both culinary schools and old wives tales will say that broth is made from meat and stock is made from bones. Stocks are unseasoned, which is why they make a great neutral base for a soup or a sauce, but pretty unremarkable on their own. What makes broths so satisfying on its own are the seasonings, like salt, pepper, or wine; a broth is essential a seasoned stock. The heated bones, cartilage, and skin turns into gelatin thanks to the collagen, which adds to the stock's body, texture, and taste. Now that that's cleared up, here's a recipe for a basic beef broth. Whether you substitute it for your morning Starbucks as some in New York's East Village have is up to you.

Ingredients

2.72 kg. beef soup bones (or a combination of knucklebones, neck bones, beef shank, and oxtail)
1 large onion
3 large carrots
2 stalks celery, including some leaves
1 large tomato
1/2 cup chopped parsnip
1 medium potato
8 whole black peppercorns
4 sprigs fresh parsley
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 cloves garlic
water

1. Preheat the oven to 450 °F (230 °C).
2. Trim the root end off onion, then slice or quarter it, peel and all. Scrub the carrots and chop them into 1-inch chunks. In a large shallow roasting pan, place the soup bones, onion, and carrots. Bake, uncovered, about 30 minutes or until the bones are well browned, turning occasionally.
3. Drain off the fat, and place the browned bones, onion, and carrots in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Pour 1/2 cup water into the roasting pan and rinse. Pour this liquid into the soup pot.
4. Scrub the potato and chop it into chunks, peel and all. Chop the celery stalks into thirds. Add the celery, tomato, parsnip, potato, peppercorns, parsley (including stems), bay leaf, salt, thyme, and garlic to the pot. Then cover everything with 12 cups of water.
5. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 5 hours. Strain the stock, discard the meat, the bones, the vegetables, and the seasonings. Makes about 8 cups.