Basic Beef Stock

2 lbs beef bones (available frozen from the meat dept.)
2 med onions, quartered
2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
2 ea carrots, roughly chopped
1/4 c tomato paste
1/2 c red wine
1 TBSP peppercorns
1 TBSP thyme, fresh (or 1 tsp dried)
2 ea bay leaves

There are two ways of making beef stock at home. The first is more traditional and time consuming.

Version 1: Heat oven to 450 F. Place bones and vegetables in a large roasting dish and cook for about 30 mins or until properly caramelized. Add tomato paste, cook until it sizzles, deglaze with wine. Put all of this in a large pot; add peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves, cover with water. Bring to a boil, then let simmer for 6-8 hours. All of these steps can also be achieved in a crock pot for easier cleanup.

I cheat a bit because I have that option.

Version 2: Get a 6 qt pressure cooker. Get it hot, add bones. Roast them for about 10 mins. Add veggies, roast another 10 mins. Add tomato, let it caramelize for a minute, then deglaze. Add spices and water, cover, and keep the heat on medium and let the pressure cooker work its magic. It takes 3-4 hours instead of of 6-8!

While stocks generally benefit from more time left cooking, this is good if you don't have all day or night to let it cook. This can be set up in the morning or even the night before and if LEFT ON LOW is safe to leave unmonitored for a few hours.

You can lose about 30 calories per serving by letting the stock sit in the fridge overnight and skimming off the fat that congeals on the top.

Serving Size: Makes 16 cups (4 qts/ 1 gal)

Number of Servings: 16

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user EMMAFLY.