Homemade Chicken Stock: Slow Cooker and Single Diner Style

I have been using my slow cooker non-stop lately. I have a Vitaclay, which has a clay bowl. It is a natural material that is also naturally non-stick, a lovely alternative to ones that contain teflon or lead. I have a small, 6 cup one which is great for one or two people. Generally if I make dinner for myself and fill the pot all the way, I have plenty left over for the next day as well. Neither my husband or I have set schedules and he has been very busy with grad school lately that we do not always eat dinner together or at the same time; so some nights I eat alone and some nights with him, but the slow cooker is perfect for either. I have been making a lot of dinners composed of just veggies and protein in it. Basically just throwing cut up veggies, any combination I have, and adding protein on top. It is great for a number of reasons. It is the ultimate lazy dinner, as it takes very little time to prepare and only uses up a couple of dishes. I have never been one for cutting veggies evenly or developing my knife skills at all, and you don't really have to with this method. For the most part, you can cut as haphazardly as you want, making sure tougher veggies are small enough to keep up with the non-tough ones. The combinations are endless and pretty risk-free, as the flavors blend together much more than they would if everything was cooked separate. I also love the texture of the prepared foods. The way mine have turned out so far (I am sure I could experiment more and keep the veggies a little less tender), the veggies and meats are very very soft. However, they are so much more flavorful than they would be otherwise because everything is contained in the pot, making it impossible for flavor to escape. All the liquid is contained in the pot as well, and I make sure to consume all of it together to retain all the nurtrients that would be lost with other cooking methods. However, the most important thing I have made so far with my slow-cooker is home-made chicken stock. 

I could do a whole post on why you should make chicken-stock and why it is so good for you (maybe I will?), but I think for the most part it is a given. What most people might not know is the BIG problem with store bought chicken stock. They can contain added sugar, flavorings or MSG (natural flavor is an acceptable term for MSG also). They are also always pasteurized, which kills any heat sensitive vitamins. They also do not taste great and it is impossible to trace where the chicken came from that was used for it. There are of course some great recipes and "how to" guides for chicken stock from various sources, but mine is a little different because it is adapted for small spaces and single diners. 

I use left-over chicken bones from dinners I make regularly. Since I tend to buy small cuts of chicken, like wings or thighs, these tend to be small but plentiful. Larger bones contain more nutrition, and using a whole carcass is ideal; but this way works well too, and I figure as long as I consume it regularly I am getting plenty of added nutrients to my overall diet. I usually freeze the bones as I go, in either glass or plastic, and make the stock when I have enough. When I am ready, I throw the bones in the slow-cooker pot. Than I add whatever veggies I want. I think carrots and celery are always good basics. Also, any non-sulfer veggie can be thrown in. The sulfur veggies, like broccoli, tend to have an overpowering flavor when used for stock. The great thing is that you can use veggies that are just past their prime, like some wilted kale that you do not think will saute up nice. Add some garlic cloves, no need to chop, and some course cut up onion if you want. Next, I add some spices of my choosing. Lots of herbs and some cayenne pepper, as we like things spicy around here. And don't forget to add a good amount of sea salt and some apple cider vinegar, just a small splash, to help draw the nutrients out of the bones. Add pure water to just under the lid. The first time I did this, I ended up having a less-flavorful stock because I added more water than bones, figuring my yield would be small; but after discovering I had much more stock than I thought I would, I ended up cutting the water significantly the next time.

 

Side note: Pleas forgive these horrible pictures! I am working on adding good pics to all my posts soon but for now I just wanted to have something to show so I used my cell phone camera...

I set the timer for 12 hours, which in the Vitaclay means using the "stew" setting and adding eight hours to the timer. It will stay in "warm" mode 12 hours after cooking so at most you have 24 hours to drain the liquid.

The Next day, I strain the stock through a small metal sieve while saving all the bones and veggies. Normally I add the stock to a mason jar for storage. You can also freeze it if you are not going to use it within a week. The way to make it extra frugal, and what I do, is save the bones and veggies for the next batch and just "refresh" it with a little more bones and veg and then repeat the process all over again. If you want to be REALLY frugal (who doesn't?), you can add the veg to a pureed soup after you use it for stock a couple of times. The stock I end up with is not as solid as it would be if I used a whole carcass, but like I said it still has plenty of nutrients and does become cloudy and have some solid pieces in the fridge, so I know there is some gelatin in there. You could also add chicken feet to the stock to add nutrition and still be able to use a small slow-cooker. That's it! You can then use to stock for cooking or drinking. Drinking stock with protein-rich meals helps with digestion and adds flavor and nutrition. Yummy!


http://www.westonaprice.org/childrens-health/slow-cooker-rules
http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/why-broth-is-beautiful
http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2011/09/bone-broth-take-frugal-to-a-new-level.html

Great Lessons I've Learned: Phytic Acid

When I started on a path towards "Real Food" a few years ago, one of the most important discoveries I made was the necessity to soak beans and grains, and sometimes nuts, to make them more easily digestible and to release vital nutrients. I do not plan on having a lot of "basics" explanation on this blog, mostly because there are so many wonderful explanations on other blogs already. However, I thought I would share my experience with soaking grains and beans because few other changes have had such a profound impact on my health.

Grains and beans are sprouted or fermented to remove a variety of compounds that make them hard to digest and that make the nutrients in them hard to absorb. Some of these compounds are; phytic acid, lectins, enzyme inhibitors, and gluten. I would like to focus on phytates because they are written about and debated a lot, and there have been many studies done that focus on them. 

What are phytates?

Phytates, or phytic acid is the storage form of phosphorus in many plants. Phytic acid not only binds the phosphorus in the plant, but will also bind with other minerals such as; iron, calcium, zinc and magnesium which makes them unavailable for absorption during digestion. According to Ramiel Nagel, who has become an expert on phytic acid, it also binds important enzymes required for the digestion of proteins and carbohydrates. In addition to phytic acid, grains and seeds also contain enzyme inhibitors which can also be neutralized by soaking or sprouting.

Mark's Daily Apple has a really good explanation of why people soak, sprout or ferment grains, as well as some good study links here:

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/soaked-sprouted-fermented-grains/#axzz1l4vByg73

Also a discussion of whether fermentation is traditional is here on The Nourishing Gourmet:

http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2010/08/is-fermenting-grains-traditional.html

Fermentation is also supported and discussed in Nourishing Traditions, which tends to serve as an intro for many people to traditional diets so I think it is safe to say many people learn about it there first.

"The well meaning advice of many nutritionists, to consume whole grains as our ancestors did and not refined flours and polished rice, is misleading and often harmful in its consequences; for while our ancestors ate whole grains, they did not consume them as presented in our modern cookbooks in the form of quick-rise breads, granolas, and other hastily prepared casseroles and concoctions. Our ancestors, and virtually all preindustrialized peoples, soaked or fermented their grains before making them into porridge, breads, cakes, and casseroles."

-Sally Fallon Morell, Nourishing Traditions

I like this quote because, personally, I can attest that when I was studying nutrition in school, there seemed to be some mixed feelings surrounding whole grains. I think it is safe to say that the professors and students generally felt that the 50% whole grains a day that the food guide pyramid recommends is healthy. However, there was a general sense that eating too many whole grains was something that was both unpleasent (due to the fiber), and something that most people would just be unwilling to do. Also, since nutritionists often work in hospitals or for community programs, whole grains were often considered to be unavailable. In my pre-WAPF days, I was outraged by this and thought that whole grains should be the only type of grain promoted and consumed (of course this was partially why my digestion was a mess, more to come on that).

From what I understand (which may not be a ton, I admit), people do not really argue about whether fermenting grains reduces phytic acid. I found some good abstracts from studies that seem to confirm this.

One from a study using wheat and buttermilk (a good method for muffins and biscuits) : http://www.springerlink.com/content/uwt0kxw702857103/

One from lactic-acid and corn: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2621.1983.tb14938.x/abstract

And this one is really fun because it deals with sourdough bread: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf000061g

So in short, fermentation reduces phytic acid. It does this because it activates the phytase in the grains or legumes. Basically, phytase is the enzyme that "digests" phytic acid. The acidic medium serves as a warm comforting bed for the grain and it thinks that it is safe to sprout and mature into a new plant (grains either are seeds or contain them). Phytase levels vary and it is good to have a rough idea of them because it can affect fermentation time. But all it takes is a little time and an acidic medium to enjoy your grains. That being said people do seem to argue about A)whether it reduces the phytic acid and other compounds enough to warrant being able to eat the grain and B) whether we should be really be eating grains at all.

Ramiel Nagel has a really great article where he lists the phytic acid content of a lot of grains talks about experiments he has done himself, which I think definately prove the effectiveness of fermentation. 

http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/living-with-phytic-acid

He tends to be a little more "hardcore" about the fermentation process, which I think differs a little from the WAPF perspective. Only in that the foundation is a little more forgiving (of phytic acid maybe?) about soaking times and methods. Also, Nagel tends to even recommend sprouting and fermenting together, while the foundation generally does an either/or type of thing.

I think it is a very personal choice whether to eat grains or not, but for me, I choose to and I can say without a doubt that without fermenting first I would not be able to tolerate them nearly as well. When I was a vegetarian, my digestion became really bad. I was bloated all the time, especially after eating grains, and had flatulance frequently. I felt my intestines distended after eating, something very foreign to me now. The first time I made beans with the method of soaking in acid first, I felt amazing! I was not bloated at all and had no gas. I kept up this method and was soon baking regularly with soaked flour. I remember being amazed at how "not full" I felt after eating a muffin I had made. I actually think I overate carbs a little at first because I was so used to a full bloated feeling that a "lighter" full feeling confused me. I also switched from buying whole grain pasta to brown rice pasta, which is still high in phytic acid, but easier on the stomach (it is a once in a while treat now); and soaking brown rice, quinoa, or any other grain I wanted to have.

So for me, I would say fermenting grains (and legumes) has been a wonderful discovery and the best option for me if I want to keep consuming grains. 

The next post I will do from a more nutritional perspective on grains.

Losing Power, Taking a Break and Regrouping

                             http://www.freefoto.com/download/15-54-25/Storm-Clouds   Ian Britton


Recently, most of Baltimore lost power during a brief but crazy storm. I was one of the unlucky ones who actually did not get it back for about a week. Other times ranged from a few hours to a couple days. However, I was lucky in one way because my in-laws, who live very close, are fortunate enough to own a generator so they could provide us with a comfortable place to stay over and also a place we could bring our perishable food.

I would like to say that the time without power made me realize how much we, as people in the modern world, depend on having electricity. I heard a few people mention that they were surprised by this. I feel as though that is somewhat redundant though, and I have already becoming extremely aware of how dependent I am on modern living. However, it did make me long for having a more independent lifestyle. For example, I remember reading in one of Joel Salatin's books about the storage cellar his family has and how they have hundreds of jars of home canned goods and dried meats. They could probably live for months without power. I, however, had to forage through local grocery stores which were quickly running out of everything. I have been wanting to start home canning (eventually) and the extreme weather patterns that are happening are making me think that this is a project I need to start immediately! Bottom line, the experience did make me sad for not having a different life; and having moments like that actually make me sad in themselves because I end up feeling ungrateful for the good life I do have.

The truth is that I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately with all the new "chores" that I find myself doing on a daily basis now. Since we have a much bigger space than we used to (and not even a whole house at that), I find myself doing exponentially more work. More cleaning and organizing, but also more cooking and food prep. I have been able to do much more than I could, but with every increase in "food quality of life" comes a decrease in my free time. Lately, I have been making slow-cooker chicken stock, homemade ice cream, and tons of soaked beans and grains (a process I have been doing for a long time, but now I can do a lot more at once and save it). Also, still maintaining my water distiller; cleaning and refilling. 

As I am writing this I am wondering if I sound very "complainy" (and after saying how I hate feeling ungrateful...ooops). But the truth is that I would not trade any of it. I love having more space. The closer my husband and I come to owning our own home, the more I realize how much I deeply want one. Homemade chicken stock is really one of the most nourishing, good-for you things you can make and an easy way to add nutrients to other dishes. And for homemade ice cream, forget it, I would not give it up for anything! I feel like I started on this path a long time ago and have to keep trucking down it, as there is no way I am turning back now. In fact I plan on just keep adding more, starting with bread making very soon.

All in all, the break from all this when the power went out was not exactly unwelcome. It made me think that I may have to incorporate some breaks in for myself along the way. For example, doing a lot of prep one week so that I don't have to the next week. Or making things in large quantities and freezing them. All things many other people do who have much busier lives than me! But alas, I am still learning. There are so many great blogs out there from people who are "doing it all" and maintaining a great home life while raising kids and/or working. There is also the other side of it, which is what I used to do, which is dealing with a small space and having to buy a lot of things and the frustration that can come with that (finding good products, high cost etc.)

So I assume we are all just figuring it out...but I would love for this to really become an advice blog and a place for people to share their struggles, so any comments would be greatly appreciated!