Brown Stock

Photo: flickr user Photos8.com

Ingredients

3 pounds veal or beef bones sawed into 2-inch pieces

2 pounds stew beef cut into 1 ½-inch cubes

2 unpeeled onions quartered

2 carrots halved

2 ribs celery halved

4 unpeeled garlic cloves

6 long parsley sprigs

1 teaspoon salt

teaspoon dried thyme crumbled

1 bay leaf

Preparation

Spread the bones and the beef in a flameproof roasting pan and roast them in pre-heated 400F. oven for 25 minutes. Add the onions and the carrots,

Roast the mixture, stirring once or twice, for 30 minutes more, or until it is browned well, and transfer it with a slotted spoon to a stockpot or kettle. Pour off any fat from the pan, add 2 cups water, and deglaze the pan over high heat, scraping up the brown bits. Add the liquid to the pot

With 14 cups cold water and bring the liquid to a boil, skimming the froth. Add 1/2 cup cold water and bring the mixture to a simmer, skimming

The froth. Add the celery, the garlic, the parsley, the salt, the thyme, and the bay leaf and simmer the mixture for 4 hours. If a more concentrated flavor is desired, boil the stock until it is reduced to the desired concentration. Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a bowl and let it cool to warm. Chill the stock and remove the fat. The stock keeps, covered and chilled, for 1 week if it is brought to a boil every 2 days and th en allowed to cool to warm, uncovered, b

Makes about 8 cups.