You might try grilling or pan-searing the onions first. I took a paella course once, and the chef grilled the onions (and tomatoes!) before cooking them in the stock- it really added a wonderful depth of flavor!
The great thing about making vegetable stock is that you can do it using vegetable scraps that ordinarily get tossed; carrot tops, limp celery stalks, tough leek greens etc. My hippie neighbors send all this to compost but I see a flavorful broth in those things. You can hold the components in the fridge for awhile (please note, I did not refer to it as the "fridgie"). After that make a bouquet garnie including bay leaves, peppercorns and so on). Cold water and salt is all you need from here on. As with all stocks, you mustn't let it come to a full boil, just a steady simmer. Taste for salt. Strain (ideally in a cheescloth lined chinois) and you are good. Very good.
I know one chef who collects all these things in the freezer until he has enough to make stock. Just make sure you scrub those carrots well before peeling (and similar) if using carrot peels... No fridgie required, just a freezie... ;)
A flavorful veg stock can have whatever vegetables you like, but it is some umami manipulation know how that will take it over the top. If color is not important, brown everything in the oven beforehand, that will give it an intense color and flavor, you can also dilute it with fresh water if you do not want such an intense flavor, but that is not the point of your question. If the stock will not be used for vegetarians, adding a bit of Worcestershire/fish sauce will do wonders, you can also use soy sauce or both! Using mushrooms will also contribute massive amounts of umami. Browned mushrooms, even better!
Absolute favorite is from http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/homemade-bouillon-recipe.html I always have this in my freezer. Amazingly good. I don't use cilantro and sometimes use different vegetables.
Homemade Bouillon
This recipe requires a food processor. I have a 8-cup / 2 liter / 2 quart model, and needed every cubic inch of it. I found the best approach if you are tight for space in your food processor is to add a few of the ingredients, then pulse a few times. The ingredients collapse and free up more space for the next few ingredients. If you don't find yourself using much bouillon, I will suggest making a half batch of this. And for those of you wanting to do a version with no salt, freeze the pureed vegetables in small amounts - say, ice cube trays, just after pureeing them. Introduce salt in whatever amount you like later in the cooking process.
5 ounces / 150 g leeks, sliced and well-washed
7 ounces / 200g fennel bulb, chopped
7 ounces / 200g carrot, well scrubbed and chopped
3.5 ounces / 100 g celery
3.5 ounces / 100g celery root (celeriac), peeled and chopped
1 ounce / 30g sun-dried tomatoes
3.5 ounces / 100g shallots, peeled
3 medium garlic cloves
9 ounces / 250g fine grain sea salt
1.5 ounces / 40 g flat-leaf parsley, loosely chopped
2 ounces / 60g cilantro (coriander), loosely chopped
Place the first four ingredients in your food processor and pulse about twenty times. Add the next four ingredients, and pulse again. Add the salt, pulse some more. Then add the parsley and cilantro. You may need to scoop some of the chopped vegetables on top of the herbs, so they get chopped. Mine tended to want to stay on top of everything else, initially escaping the blades.
You should end up with a moist, loose paste of sorts. Keep 1/4th of it in a jar in the refrigerator for easy access in the coming days, and freeze the remaining 3/4 for use in the next month. Because of all the salt it barely solidifies making it easy to spoon directly from the freezer into the pot before boiling.
Start by using 1 teaspoon of bouillon per 1 cup (250 ml), and adjust from there based on your personal preference.
Carrot, yellow onion(Spanish if you can find it), and celery chopped roughly in inch cubes, bay leaf, 2 garlic cloves (leave whole for easier straining) 1tbsp salt and 1 tbsp ground pepper in a large pot with 8-12 cups water depending on size that you have....bring to a boil and simmer one hour.
8 Comments
Voted the Best Reply!
Homemade Bouillon
This recipe requires a food processor. I have a 8-cup / 2 liter / 2 quart model, and needed every cubic inch of it. I found the best approach if you are tight for space in your food processor is to add a few of the ingredients, then pulse a few times. The ingredients collapse and free up more space for the next few ingredients. If you don't find yourself using much bouillon, I will suggest making a half batch of this. And for those of you wanting to do a version with no salt, freeze the pureed vegetables in small amounts - say, ice cube trays, just after pureeing them. Introduce salt in whatever amount you like later in the cooking process.
5 ounces / 150 g leeks, sliced and well-washed
7 ounces / 200g fennel bulb, chopped
7 ounces / 200g carrot, well scrubbed and chopped
3.5 ounces / 100 g celery
3.5 ounces / 100g celery root (celeriac), peeled and chopped
1 ounce / 30g sun-dried tomatoes
3.5 ounces / 100g shallots, peeled
3 medium garlic cloves
9 ounces / 250g fine grain sea salt
1.5 ounces / 40 g flat-leaf parsley, loosely chopped
2 ounces / 60g cilantro (coriander), loosely chopped
Place the first four ingredients in your food processor and pulse about twenty times. Add the next four ingredients, and pulse again. Add the salt, pulse some more. Then add the parsley and cilantro. You may need to scoop some of the chopped vegetables on top of the herbs, so they get chopped. Mine tended to want to stay on top of everything else, initially escaping the blades.
You should end up with a moist, loose paste of sorts. Keep 1/4th of it in a jar in the refrigerator for easy access in the coming days, and freeze the remaining 3/4 for use in the next month. Because of all the salt it barely solidifies making it easy to spoon directly from the freezer into the pot before boiling.
Start by using 1 teaspoon of bouillon per 1 cup (250 ml), and adjust from there based on your personal preference.
Makes roughly 3 1/2 cups.