Caldo is Life

Ok, so if you are one of those unfortunate people reading this food blog due to lack of better things to do, you may have already read my Saucy Pancit Canton entry and wanted a copy of my caldo or soup stock. 

If you don't know what in the world a 'caldo' or a 'stock' is, just google it or try this link. A lot of useful yadah-yadahs are there but basically, most of the recipes on this blog use the stock recipe below which is basically a pumped-up version of a regular stock.

Having a great stock handy is one of the most underrated and probably the most neglected among Filipino cooking practices. Popularity of bouillon cubes in Pinoy cooking is probably the main reason why many home cooks seldom use stock in their dishes. You can use bouillon cubes, but the best thing that a great stock can give you that that piece of "capitalist swine mind conditioning" can't is control. Control over your end product - the intensity, the texture, the complexity of flavor profiling - because you are the master of that pot, you control everything that goes in it.

I call it "awesome" because it's the stock recipe I liked the most, of course, keeping in mind that this stock recipe will be the base for most of my recipes. So if you have a stock recipe that is superior than this, my goodness, by all means, use that! Hehehehe! Better, Heston Blumenthal has an absolutely epic chicken stock here, you can make it, use it.

The PancitLove "Awesome" Stock

INGREDIENTS

(for chicken flavor) - 1 kilo uncooked chicken carcass, neck and feet

AND/OR

(for pork flavor) - 1 kilo uncooked pork bones, hocks and snout 
- 100 grams of etag also known as cordillera ham (good quality bacon trimmings or salted ham would also do.)

- 2 large carrots, cut into big chunks
- 2 stalks leeks, cut into big chunks
- 1 large red onion, halved
- 1 bulb garlic, halved
- a bunch of kinchay (it's flat leaf parsley for you coño kids.)
- cracked black and/or white pepper
- water

METHOD


1. Add chicken to pot and cover with cold water (remember, cold water.)
2. On high heat, bring boil, then turn the heat down and continue simmering while skimming off foam or any impurities on the surface of the stock, do it as often as possible.
3. After 30 minutes, add the remaining ingredients, cover and turn to low heat.
4. Continue simmering for 4-10 hours, adding boiling water if the liquid drops below the level of the solids in the pot.
5. Remove from heat and take off solids from the pot.
6. Run the stock through the strainer to a bowl.
7. Transfer the solids to the cheese close and squeeze the as much juices out of it as you can.
8. Cover the stock and let it reach room temperature before chilling it overnight.
9. Skim off the fat that solidified at the surface of the stock. (you can use the fat to flavor other dishes)
10. Put is in a tightly covered container. You can use it for 3 days when chilled and up to a week when frozen. 

THINGS OF NOTE:

- I did not use mirepoix to describe my veggies because I am not classically trained and I don't like to sound pretentious.  
- Etag is used mainly as a salt replacement. You can adjust it's quantity depending on your taste. You can also use ham bones or chinese ham hocks as replacements for etag, they are cheaper and easier to find. 
- Etag will most likely make your stock brownish rather that yellowish like a regular pork stock.
- Other herbs, spices and aromatics can also be added to the stock depending on the need. Since most Filipino chicken dishes use ginger, you can add it directly to the stock. 
- You can use the "Awesome" Stock for 3 days when chilled and up to a week when frozen. 
- Put the "Awesome" Stock in ice trays and freeze it. Instant stock cubes. Pop it in any dish that needs some flavor boost.