No Fail Vegetable Stock Recipe - Going Zero Waste (2024)

FAQs

Is making vegetable stock wasteful? ›

By making your own stock from scraps, you'll save money by using the bits of veggies that you might otherwise discard – plus you know exactly what's gone into your stock.

Vegetables to avoid: Scraps from the following vegetables are better off going into the compost bin, as their flavors can be too overpowering: cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, turnips, rutabagas, artichokes.

Avoid bitter greens and members of the brassica family (kale, cabbage, Bok Choy). Other greens can be used in small quantities. Good in small quantities (no more than 1/5 of the stock ingredients). Foods in the Brassica family, such as kohlrabi, are too strong for stock/broth and can impart a bitter taste.

Add bright, fresh flavor to vegetable broth

Don't boil fresh herbs in broth, though, or they could make the stock bitter. To brighten any soup, stock, or broth, a splash of lemon juice or vinegar is always a good idea.

Vegetable Scraps You Should Freeze for Stock

Carrot: skin, root, tips. Celery: any and all of it, although leaves are better put to use in soups and salads. Turnip: any and all of it. Fennel: in moderation, bulb and fronds.

Some vegetables just don't taste great in a stock! Cruciferous vegetables will get funky tasting, and seemingly mild vegetables like zucchini, green beans, and bell peppers can get bitter if simmered for too long. Ultimately, if it doesn't add, it subtracts! This is my rule of thumb for most recipes.

Save those vegetables that may have lost their crunchy appeal for a flavorful veggie stock. Even if stored properly, celery and carrots may become floppy after some time, but don't let them go to the compost. Throw in your onion skins, potato peels, and other veggie scraps from cooking to add more flavor to the mix!

Vegetables to Avoid When Making Vegetables Stock

Starchy vegetables like potatoes and turnips will make for a gummy, cloudy vegetable stock. Beets overpower their aromatic counterparts. Zucchini and greens beans become bitter when slowly simmered for as long it takes to make this stock.

Steer clear of any member of the brassica family; broccoli, cauliflower, kale and cabbage among others. These will ruin your stock with a sulphurous and bitter flavour. Softer vegetables such as potatoes or pumpkin are no good as they break down too easily, creating a cloudy stock.

The vegetables should be cut in small pieces (1/2″ to 1″ pieces) so that they render their flavor more easily. The stock should not simmer for more than 45 minutes. In that time the vegetables have given all their flavor to the water. Simmering them longer will only turn the vegetables into mush.

Do tomatoes go in vegetable stock? ›

In an 8 quart pot, sauté onions, mushrooms, and celery in a little olive oil for 15 minutes or until lightly carmelized. Add carrots, leeks, garlic, tomato, apple, parsley, bay leaves, basil, peppercorns, salt, dulse flakes and water. Bring to a gentle boil.

Turnips and radishes. While you can toss in the tops of most produce, there are some root veggies she recommends leaving out. "Stay away from some of those really bitter root vegetables, like turnips and radishes," says Jawad. They can ruin the balance of your stock, making it come out very bitter.

Vegetable stock likely comes unseasoned, while broth usually contains salt and other seasonings. Vegetable stock is made with untrimmed, sometimes whole vegetables, while broth is made from trimmed, roughly chopped vegetables.

A squeeze of citrus, a dollop of yogurt or a drizzle of cream, a dusting of cheese or a good chile powder, a sprinkling of some herbs or croutons — all can take a perfectly fine soup into the realm of the delectable. Even a spiral of good olive oil to finish and some coarse sea salt can do wonders.

Obviously, the vegetables left over from the broth will no longer be very tasty, but they can be reused to prepare other excellent dishes. Don't throw them away, because you can do some creative recycling with them.

Um, as you're cooking with stock, the the vegetable, the vegetables will release the nutrients and the flavor into the water and what you're left, um, what you're left to it is just kind of a mushy vegetable. It doesn't have a lot of taste.

Vegetable broth contains iron that helps to stimulate the formation of red blood cells, helping to avoid anemia, increase energy levels, and avoid tiredness. Homemade broth helps to manage body metabolism, optimizing nutrient absorption, and resulting in a lighter feeling.

If you buy vegetable stock, you'll likely get a product with a lot of sodium but not a lot of flavor. By making your own stock, you can control the amount of sodium and create an incredibly flavorful base for soups, stews, risottos, and other dishes that call for stock as the primary cooking liquid.