Lazy chicken stock

Name: Lazy chicken stock
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 2 h 20 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 1 whole cooked chicken carcass; 2 large onions (trimmed but peeled), cut into wedges; 2 sticks celery, roughly chopped; 2 large carrots (unpeeled), roughly chopped; 4 large cloves garlic (unpeeled), bashed; 1 tbsp black peppercorns

Love the idea of homemade stock, but no time to bubble on the stove? Enter Waitrose food editor Lucy Battersby's ‘lazy’ version: bung it all in the oven – no scum-skimming required. For more ideas starring the nation's favourite bird, take a look at our chicken recipes. Follow Lucy on Instagram.

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Gluten free

Makes3 litres
CourseAccompaniment
Prepare20 mins
Cook2 hrs
Total time2 hrs 20 mins

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1 whole cooked chicken carcass
2 large onions (trimmed but peeled), cut into wedges
2 sticks celery, roughly chopped
2 large carrots (unpeeled), roughly chopped
4 large cloves garlic (unpeeled), bashed
1 tbsp black peppercorns

Heat the oven to 120ºC, gas mark ½(half). Clean the chicken bones of any meat, skin or fatty bits, breaking up the carcass as you do so, then arrange the bones in an ovenproof casserole dish with the remaining ingredients and pour over enough water to cover by about 2 centimetres (about 3 litres). Over a medium heat, bring slowly up to a gentle simmer.
Once very gently simmering, cover the dish with a lid or foil, then transfer to the oven for about 2 hours (max 3 hours). Once ready, line a sieve with a couple of layers of kitchen paper, sit it over a large bowl, then ladle the stock through it.
Season with a little salt and a squeeze of lemon juice, if liked, then either use straight away or set aside to cool. Once it’s cool, you can store it in the fridge for 2-3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Cook’s tip

Level up

For a rich, golden stock, roast the bones and aromatics first before adding any liquid. Drizzle with a little oil and roast at 180ºC, gas mark 4 for about an hour, until browned.

Typical values per 100ml when made using specific products in recipe