An easy, step-by-step tutorial for how to make Chicken Stock on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot. Making homemade Chicken Stock is the gateway to taking any broth-based recipe to the next level; the flavor is incomparable and you will never buy store-bought again!
Why I make my own stock:
- Healthy and flavorful: Simmering bones to make stock has next-level depth of flavor that you can't get from chicken broth or store-bought stock and it takes any recipe to the next level! Also, I love knowing and controlling exactly what's in my stock.
- Easy: I grab a rotisserie chicken from Costco for $5 and feel good that I can use the meat in several different recipes, and instead of wasting the carcass, I use it to make healthy and flavorful homemade broth!
Difference Between Chicken Broth and Chicken Stock:
The biggest difference between the two is chicken broth is made from simmering the meat and vegetables, and chicken stock is made from simmering the bones, which removes extra flavor and collagen from the bones (which is why stock has a jello-like texture when it's refrigerated).
You can use stock and broth interchangeably in most recipes, but chicken stock has richer depth of flavor and is highly preferred for recipes where it's the “star”, like in chicken noodle soup. In my opinion, it's hugely worth it to make chicken stock from scratch!
How to make Chicken Stock:
Remove Meat from the rotisserie chicken. Place meat in a covered container in the fridge to add to the soup later, or freeze chicken meat for up to 3 months.
Add leftover bones and skin from the rotisserie chicken to a large stockpot. Add carrots, celery, onion, bay leaves, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, and water.
Bring mixture to a boil, skimming off any foam that rises to the top. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer on low for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours, for even richer flavor.
Strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer, discarding bones, vegetables, and seasonings so you are only left with a clear, smooth stock. Stir in chicken bouillon.
Store in refrigerator for 3-4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Use to make homemade chicken noodle soup!
Storage and Freezing Instructions:
To Store: Refrigerate the stock for use within 3-4 days. (Note that it will take on a gelatin-like texture in the fridge, but will liquidize once warmed again). After refrigerating, skim off any fat that rises to the surface.
To Freeze: Measure out the stock in freezer safe bags in batches of two cups each. This way, when you pull one out, you know there is exactly 2 cups of homemade chicken stock!
Instant Pot Chicken Stock:
Place chicken bones and skin, carrots, celery, onion, bay leaves, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, and water into Instant Pot. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes. Allow pressure to naturally release.
Strain broth through fine-mesh strainer, discarding bones, vegetables, and seasonings so you are only left with a clear, smooth broth. Stir in chicken bouillon. Store in refrigerator for 3-4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipes with Chicken Stock:
- Chicken Noodle Soup
- Creamy White Chicken Chili
- Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Pasta
- Chicken Tetrazzini
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Recipe
Chicken Stock
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 rotisserie chicken , meat removed so you're only left with bones and skin
- 2 ribs celery , with leaves, cut into chunks
- 2 medium carrots , cut into chunks
- 2 medium onions , cut into chunks
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 10 whole peppercorns
- 8 cups cold water
- 2 Tablespoons Better than bouillon chicken paste* , or 6 chicken bouillon cubes
Instructions
- Place rotisserie chicken, vegetables, spices and water into a large soup pot.
- Slowly bring to a boil over medium heat. Skim off any foam that rises to the surface.
- Reduce heat, cover and simmer on low heat for at least 2 hours or longer.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Strain stock through a fine sieve strainer, discarding all vegetables and seasonings so you are only left with the stock. Season with chicken boullion paste, to taste.
- Store in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Skim off the fat that rises to the top. If not using within a few days, freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe April 2019. Updated September 2021.
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I’ve made this stock several times and it is the absolute best. I usually do the minimum two hour cook, but have decided to cook overnight this time and I’m so excited for the outcome. I did a double recipe this time, because one batch never seems to be enough. Ialso added a head of garlic to this batch, because let’s be honest, garlic is amazing in everything. Now to decide which soup to make with it.
This is the best chicken stock I’ve ever made or used. Thank you for such a great recipe!
This produced maybe 1 cup of stock… brought it to a low simmer after boil as instructed.
If you only got about 1 cup of stock, it likely simmered too hard or too long and reduced more than intended. The key is keeping it at a very gentle simmer—just barely bubbling—so it extracts flavor without evaporating too much liquid. Make sure the lid is on during the simmer to trap moisture, and double-check that you’re starting with the full 8 cups of water.
Why does this say ‘from scratch’ broth if one of the ingredients is packaged broth 😭
Seriously, what the heck? I got barely TWO cups of broth from this recipe after putting in over 8 cups to start! What a waste. Now I have to throw in mostly store bought broth anyway.
Sometimes simmering too high or too long can cook off a ton of liquid. Low and slow is key here.
-Stacy
Hello, you have to keep adding in water as you are simmering for water lost through evaporatio, so you have to always pay attention to the pot
Lol you probably forgot to put the lid on…I don’t see how water would escape a closed system unless you had lid off! Don’t worry, I also missed that the first time around.
Why do you include the better than boill…I’m not gonna try and spell that…I made Italian wedding soup the other day and didn’t have any broth on hand so I used water and those cubes and it tasted horrible. Turned me off from wanting to include that stuff. So I’m curious what would happen if I just leave it out? But if I go through all the trouble, I don’t want to mess it up. Could you help me understand what role it plays?
The bouillon just bumps up the flavor, especially if the chicken bones don’t give off a super strong stock on their own. But if your soup has other flavorful stuff going in (like meatballs + pasta in Italian wedding), you might not even need it.
-Stacy
Can I use it same day? Make the broth in the morning and finish it by dinner and then use it for chicken noodle soup? Or does it have to be put in the fridge first?
You can use it the same day! Just skim off any extra fat you see on the top. Enjoy!
I also include any accumulated juices in the rotisserie container
Dont understand how its from scratch if you add boullion cubes… seems strange and deteating to initial intent (you could of course add premade to make it more flavorful… duh! but then DONT call it “from scratch”!
I agree with another reviewer, why add store-bought bouillon to a homemade recipe. Nonetheless, I made the soup, however my stock yielded only 6 cups, which meant I would have had to add 4 cups of water to make 10 cups. I decided to addd only 2.5 cups of water so that I wouldn’t dilute it too much, and also added the bouillon. It tastes great but I don’t understand why I didn’t get a full 8 cups of stock. I kept the pot covered while it simmered.