Homemade Vegetable Stock

5.00 (8)
⏱ 120 mins 🍽 4, 4 cups 🏷 Stocks

This classic vegetable stock is a fundamental recipe for any kitchen. It is far superior to shop-bought versions and remarkably simple to prepare. Using affordable ingredients like carrots, onion, celery, and aromatic herbs, it simmers for 2 hours to develop deep flavour. The result is 1 litre of rich, versatile stock perfect for enhancing soups, risottos, and countless other dishes. It stores well in the fridge or freezer, making it a convenient staple to have on hand.

Homemade Vegetable Stock

Ingredients

  • 2 litres / 2 quarts water
  • 2 medium carrots ((unpeeled), cut in 3 (180g/6oz each))
  • 1 onion (, quartered (~250g/8oz))
  • 1 celery stem (, cut in 4 pieces (~180g/6oz))
  • 2 garlic cloves, (smashed (Note 1))
  • 3 parsley stems
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 thyme sprig
  • 1/2 tsp black peppercorns
  • 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tsp salt (, kosher/cooking for store bought level salted vegetable stock (Note 2))

Method

  1. Place all the listed ingredients into a large pot. Bring the contents to a simmer, then lower the heat and allow it to simmer gently without a lid for 2 hours. The liquid should ripple, not bubble vigorously, and reduce by roughly half.
  2. Strain the liquid through a sieve, pressing on the vegetables to extract their juices. You should obtain 1 litre / 1 quart of stock. If the volume is significantly greater, return the strained liquid to the pot and simmer further to reduce it.
  3. This homemade stock can be used directly in any recipe that calls for shop-bought vegetable stock, using a 1:1 substitution.
  4. For storage, keep the stock refrigerated for up to 5 days. Alternatively, freeze it for up to 3 months. Consider freezing in 1 cup portions using jars, small bags flattened for space, or containers.

Nutrition (per serving)

Sodium2416 mg

Recipe details

CategoryStocks