Why do stock recipes usually say to simmer with the lid off?

I looked at a couple of stock recipes today and I notice they say to simmer stock with the lid off. That seems counter-intuitive to me, since with long simmering, you're going to lose some volume of the stock. Does anyone know why you wouldn't want to simmer stock with the lid on?

Diana B
  • Posted by: Diana B
  • February 23, 2013
  • 19904 views
  • 2 Comments

2 Comments

pierino
pierino February 23, 2013
Actually the lid shouldn't be completely off, just skew. If you seal the pan too tightly you risk having the stock boil which will make it cloudy. And simmer means having some bubbles and foam coming up, but much beyond that.
 
ATG117
ATG117 February 23, 2013
You want the lid off so that the steam can escape and the stock can reduce and intensify in flavor. Lid off is key.
 
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