The Gravy Train
It is my firm belief that you can never have enough good gravy, especially at Thanksgiving. For me, that means I can never have enough good homemade stock.
In fact, the neck and giblets that come inside the turkey don’t provide near enough source material for the quantity of stock I need. I not only make loads of gravy, but also use stock in stuffing, and later Thanksgiving, in soup with leftover turkey meat.
Now is the time to get stock made. Homemade stock will keep up to a week in the fridge. I often freeze it, sometimes measured in smallish containers, to keep it at its freshest, esp. if I don’t think I’ll get around to soup until the Saturday or Sunday after T-Day.
Any kind of turkey meat will do, but my favorite for getting the most flavor for the buck is turkey wings.
Turkey Stock
Go easy on the salt, because the stock will be used in dishes that will be seasoned.
Chopping larger turkey parts into smaller pieces will allow them to release their flavor in less time, but this is optional.
If willing to add another step to the process, try browning the turkey wings in a 400-degree oven, about 30, minutes, just until brown. Then use some water to loosen any browned bits from the pan, and put all that and the remaining ingredients in the soup pot. This will produce a darker, richer stock that’s especially well-suited to gravy.
3 pounds turkey parts (wings, necks or legs)
Turkey giblets from 1 turkey (optional)
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
Water
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme (optional)
10 black peppercorns (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1. Place the turkey and vegetables in a large soup or stock pot with enough water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and skim any foam from the surface and discard.
2. Add bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns and salt. Gently simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 3 hours. If the liquid evaporates to the point that the turkey bones are uncovered, the heat is too high. Add more water to cover and reduce the heat. The pot should just be bubbling a little here and there.
3. Strain through a sieve, discarding solids. (Reserve giblets if desired for stuffing or gravy.) Cool at room temperature, then skim the yellowish fat from the surface of the broth and refrigerate the broth in a covered container. Alternately, the stock may be refrigerated with the fat; when cold, the congealed fat can be easily removed. The stock will keep refrigerated up to one week or frozen up to two months.
Makes 2 1/2 quarts.
