Vegetable Scrap Stock

We will absolutely and upfront say that we stole this idea from Buzzfeeds Tasty. And by this point most people know how to do this but we wanted to share anyway because its a fun thing that we do.

This whole thing came about actually, one day while at Alissas parents house in Vermont and we had no where to compost things. Primarily because Alissas mother never got around to putting a compost bin out, but secondarily because we are actually the worlds worst composters.

Really its because Alissa has a terrible fear of bad smells and Brett isnt fond of the idea of decomposing food in the kitchen or of the work needed to keep up with composting. We just figure there are other ways to get this done.

SO ANYWAY when years ago Buzzfeed came up with thegenius idea to take those bits of veg that we would only ever throw out, Alissa jumped on the bandwagon and ran full force into this.

To begin with! When youre cutting up your vegetables for whatever meal you happen to be making put those scraps into a plastic gallon zip-lock bag that youve taken out to hold all those bits. Were talking leeks leaves, carrot peels, celery ends, thyme stems, onion paper and ends, honestly anything that isnt broccoli, cauliflower or brussel sprouts. Keep the bag in the freezer so that the scraps dont go bad.

Once you have a full bag of scraps youre ready to take it to the next level. (Real quick dont let those veg scraps sit in the fridge too long after about 5 days they start to compost and its not pleasant.)

Put the scraps into the stock pot! YAAASSSSS

Now, perhaps at some point in the past week you have boiled potatoes? EXCELLENT. Save the water. Itll be a great addition to the stock as its technically already done some of the work for you! Add that potato water to the pot and then head to the sink to make sure that youve got water enough to cover the vegetables.

Here is the waiting bit. We typically let the stock boil for 20 full minutes and then let it simmer for another 40-50 minutes. We want to get all the flavor out of those scraps that we could. (However because inevitably the longer you let every thing sit together the better the flavors meld)

By this point, you should have an actual lovely aroma of cooking vegetables wafting through your kitchen. Well done you.

When youre satisfied with the level of stock-iness that youve achieved, prepare to strain those scraps out! By which we mean find a big pot/container (or several small ones) and slowly strain the stock into them using a colander to catch the scraps.

Here, if you so choose, you can put the now defunct scraps into a compost bin.

The stock keeps for about 4-5 days in the fridge and very well frozen. We dont recommend using glass to freeze in tho, liquids have this way of expanding and well exploding. So no glass in the freezer. Buzzfeed recommends putting it into ice trays but we dont have an ice maker so we use those for actual ice. We do have a silicone tray called the Souper Tray and its set in 1 cup blocks and makes the perfect size for freezing stock and soup.

And there you have it! Vegetable stock! That wasnt so scary was it?

Heres a version for you to print:

• carrot peel, ends
• celery stalk ends
• leek, tough green leaves, bottom
• garlic peels
• fresh thyme leaves, stems
• zucchini ends
• 1 quart potato water
• enough water to cover the scraps

1. Collect peelings and scraps of vegetables used over a week in a ziplock bag and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
2. When the bag is full, put the scraps into a large stock pot and cover with water, if using reserved potato water, use here!
3. Boil for 20 minutes, then reduce to a simmer for 40-50 additional minutes.
4. Strain the broth and put into freezer safe containers for up to 3 months or into the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
5. Use to your hearts content!

Credit: Based off of Buzzfeeds recipe
Also note that you can use a whole variety of vegetables here.