Homemade Chicken Stock and Shredded Chicken

I started making chicken stock from scratch a few months ago because I want to decrease the amount of processed food that we buy, I want to know what goes into our bodies, and I figured that I could also tweak it to suit our taste. I WAS RIGHT! Homemade chicken stock is so much better than the stuff that you buy off of the shelf, you know, that could last a nuclear blast (what do they put in that stuff?).

After searching the Internet, and perusing a couple of different recipes, this is what I came up with. My recipe will yield 7 quarts of stock and three baggies of shredded chicken. I made three batches this weekend so now I've got enough stock and chicken to get us through the next few months. YAY!

So here is how I make my Chicken Stock:

1 5lb chicken                     

2 onions (peeled and quartered)             

3-4 carrots (halved)        

4 celery stalks (with leaves, cut into thirds)                                        

1 head of garlic (halved crosswise)

2 TBSP Kosher Salt          

1.5 TBS whole peppercorns                        

15 stalks of flat leaf parsley

15 stalks of dill                  

15 stalks of thyme                                          

15 stalks of cilantro                                                                                         

28 cups of water

Assemble ingredients

Put it in the pot

Place all of the ingredients into a HUGE stockpot and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for 1-2 hours (depending on how long it takes the chicken to cook, sometimes I use a fresh chicken and other times I use a frozen chicken so it takes longer). Once the chicken is cooked remove it from the pot and take the meat off of the bones. (I just put the meat into a bowl and set it aside to shred later) Replace the carcass into the pot and continue to cook for 2 hours.

Once you turn the heat off let the pot cool, strain the liquid through a colander and let cool the rest of the way on the counter. Once the stock has cooled to room temperature, place in the refrigerator overnight to chill completely. The next day remove the fat from the surface and then divide the stock into the size that you need.

I know this looks gross but at least it is no longer in the stock.

I put mine into quart size bags and freeze them. You can use the stock immediately or you can freeze for up to three months.

Ready for the freezer.

Do you have any great freezer meals that are your go to life savers?