Instant Pot Chicken Stock From Scratch
Instant Pot Chicken Stock offers a quick and easy way to fill your freezer with this nutritious kitchen staple. Homemade chicken stock provides more nourishment and flavour than store-bought varieties and this version is much less time-consuming than traditional methods.
In This Article
What Makes This Recipe So Good?
Chicken soup, made from a nourishing chicken stock, has been used in traditional cultures for centuries. It’s well-known as a cold and flu remedy and is also supportive of gut health.
Bones leech several nutrients into the liquid during the cooking process. In particular collagen, which contains an abundance of amino acids, as well as several minerals like calcium, magnesium, and zinc. The more gelatinous your stock the richer in collagen (and gelatin, which is derived from collagen) it is. It’s these proteins that have shown some benefit in supporting and restoring gut health.
Ingredients – What You’ll Need To Make This Recipe
Using an instant pot is the quickest and easiest way to make stock. There’s no need to watch over it constantly as you might with a pot on the stove and there’s no risk of the contents of the pot bubbling over. That means less clean-up too.
- Spice mix – Any mix of whole spices is fine. Try things like coriander seeds, whole peppercorns, slices of fresh ginger, star anise, bay leaves, and salt. I’ve also used a few others that can be found at an Asian grocery store.
- Leftover chicken carcass/frame – You want at least one of these. Keeping the frame from a roast chicken is perfect. If your pot is big enough, or you don’t intend to use wings and/or feet, you could use two.
- Raw chicken bones – Chicken wings, wing tips, and chicken feet all add so much flavor. But they also add gelatin from the breakdown of collagen and connective tissues, which is a great nutrient for the gut.
- Mix of veg – carrot, celery, onion, and a spent corn cob, which will make the stock lovely and sweet. Replace the onion with the green top from a leek or 1/2 bunch of green onions/shallots if preferred.
- Apple – A pink lady or fuji is perfect for this stock. You want something that will add a little sweetness to the soup. If you can’t find either of these, just ensure you avoid very tart varieties like Granny Smith.
- Apple cider vinegar – This helps to draw nutrients from the bones as they cook.
- Fresh coriander/cilantro – To add more flavor and nutrients. Parsley is also fine.
This rich, flavorful stock can be used as a base for homemade soups, stews, or sauces, and it’s also great to cook rice, barley or quinoa in. For something very different try these Savoury Oats.
How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Stock
This easy recipe requires few steps to deliver a delicious stock every time. A quick dry-fry of spices, followed by aromatics, adding the rest of the ingredients and letting the pot do all the work. You’ll have a freezer full of your own chicken stock in no time.
- Dry fry your spices – Turn the instant pot onto sauté. Toss in your coriander seeds, star anise, ginger, and licorice (if using) and stir for a minute so the spices release their aroma.
- Add – onion or leek, carrot, and celery. Cook for a few minutes to let them soften slightly.
- Pour in – 2 cups of water to stop the cooking process, then add another 2 cups.
- Add – any remaining spices, the whole corn cob, chopped apple, then place the chicken carcass on top. Now add the wings, salt, and a dash of apple cider vinegar.
- Pour in – the remaining 2-4 cups of water. You should have included 1.5 to 2 litres of water by now (1.5 – 2 quarts).
- Place – the coriander or parsley on top if using, close the lid and set to pressure cook for 1 hour and 10 minutes.
- Manually release pressure – as soon as cooking stops.
- Strain the stock – through a colander into a large bowl. Doing this through a muslin or nut milk bag will remove any debris if you prefer this. You will however, also lose some of the delicious chicken fat so I skip it.
- Cool and store – Pour the strained stock into jars and allow to cool slightly before refrigerating. This will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for several months.
I often make my first batch of stock with this Whole Chicken Soup recipe. Once that’s done and the cooked chicken has been removed from the frame I keep that for this instant pot stock. Making both these recipes will give you a considerable amount of stock that you can freeze and have on hand when needed.
Substitutions And Variations
The spice mix in the recipe can be greatly simplified so tracking down specialty spices isn’t necessary. Leave out the dried shiitake mushrooms, dates/jujube, and licorice if they’re not readily available. You definitely don’t need them but they add some lovely sweet, and earthy flavours to your stock if you can find them.
Stovetop Version
This can be made on the stove top if preferred. You will need to keep a closer eye on it, but it will be equally delicious. You can also turn this into a bone broth using the stovetop method. Bone broth simply means your stock is simmered longer (up to 24 hours or so) to release more flavour. It also becomes more jelly-like as a result of the gelatin being released from the bones. That makes it great gut food!
- Follow all steps from 1 to 5 in the recipe using a large pot that will hold at least 6 – 7 litres (~ 6 – 7 quarts). This allows for the liquid and the veg plus bones etc. to fit with ease.
- Ensure the ingredients are just about covered with water and toss in the coriander/cilantro or parsley. If ingredients are sticking out slightly it’s fine, as it will all break down as it cooks.
- Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and simmer for 3 hours (no lid on). Take the time to skim off the scum that rises to the surface as it cooks. This will ensure your stock is much clearer. The one advantage over cooking in the instant pot.
- Once cooked, strain through a colander and pour into jars or containers. Allow to cool slightly before refrigerating or freezing. If you want an even clearer stock, strain it through muslin or a nut milk bag. The stock will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for several months.
Tips For Success With This Recipe
Aromatics make all the difference to a stock so don’t skip on them. Use any combination of shallots/green onions, celery, leeks, carrots and garlic that you like.
Place any vegetable scraps and peelings or leftover bones from other meals in a bag in the freezer. You can continually add to this and when you next make stock include these too. This is a great way to reduce kitchen waste while adding flavor to a homemade stock.
Storing/Freezing
Store leftover stock in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
FAQ
Cook rice, quinoa or other grains in chicken stock to increase flavour and digestibility. Chicken stock can also be used as a base for soups, in risotto and paella, to poach chicken breast, and it can keep roasts moist while cooking.
Chicken bones, aromatics, water and herbs/spices form the base of chicken stock. An instant pot version is no different.
Recipes That Use This Stock
- Whole Chicken Soup – the bonus with this one is it will give you the chicken frame you need for this stock recipe.
- Ham And Pumpkin Soup
- Beetroot And Goats Cheese Risotto
If you try this recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment, rate it, and remember to tag @wholenaturalkitchen in your pics or reels on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok!
Instant Pot Chicken Stock From Scratch
Equipment
- 1 Instant pot
- 1 Large pot (if cooking on the stove top)
Ingredients
- 1 chicken carcass (can use 2 if they'll fit)
- 4 large chicken wings (use 6-8 if they're smaller)
- 2 carrots, chopped into chunks
- 1 celery stalk, chopped into large sections
- 1 brown onion, chopped into quarters
- 1 pink lady or fuji apple, chopped
- ½ bunch fresh coriander (cilantro), or flat leaf parsley
- 1 spent corn cob (optional)
- 4 slices of fresh ginger
- 1 star anise
- ½ tsp peppercorns
- ½ tsp coriander seeds
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp salt
- 2-3 dried shiitake mushrooms (optional)
- 2 red dates/jujube (optional)
- 1/4-1/2 tsp licorice root (optional)
- 6-7 cups water (use the amount that takes you to just under the max line on your instant pot)
Instructions
- Dry fry your spices – Turn the instant pot onto sauté. Toss in your coriander seeds, star anise, ginger, and licorice (if using) and stir for a minute so the spices release their aroma.
- Add – onion or leek, carrot, and celery. Cook for a few minutes to let them soften slightly.
- Pour in – 2 cups of water to stop the cooking process, then add another 2 cups.
- Add – any remaining spices, the whole corn cob, chopped apple, then place the chicken carcass on top. Now add the wings, salt, and a dash of apple cider vinegar.
- Pour in – the remaining 2-4 cups of water. You should have included 1.5 to 2 litres of water by now (1.5 – 2 quarts).
- Place – the coriander or parsley on top if using, close the lid and set to pressure cook for 1 hour and 10 minutes.
- Manually release pressure – as soon as cooking stops by pressing the pressure release button.
- Strain the stock – Take the lid off and strain stock through a colander into a large bowl. Doing this through a muslin or nut milk bag will remove any debris if you prefer this. You will however, also lose some of the delicious chicken fat so I skip it.
- Cool and store – Pour the strained stock into jars and allow to cool slightly before refrigerating. This will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for several months.