Nicholas Gavin is the Culinary Creative Director of ChefSteps, where he develops recipes and is responsible for making all the food look beautiful. Nick has worked at ChefSteps for over a decade; he and ChefSteps co-founder Grant Crilly worked together at Modernist Cuisine. Nick has worked in professional kitchens both in the United States and abroad, most notably at Mugaritz in San Sebastian, Spain.

Nicholas Gavin

This golden chicken stock is extremely versatile and ridiculously easy to make. 
 
With a pressure cooker, you can make stock in about a quarter of the time it takes in a regular pot on the stovetop, but this recipe works for both. It’s a great way to use chicken bones or carcasses that you would otherwise discard. 
 
Cook a large batch and stash it in your freezer. Use it for making soups, consommé, stews, sauces, jus, or even demi-glace. 
 
EDITORS’ NOTE: We’ve updated this recipe to improve its flavor and cut out unnecessary equipment. The recipe no longer calls for a #200 or #500 sieve to strain the stock; a regular fine-mesh strainer works fine. We’ve decreased the amount of water and aromatics to produce a stock with more concentrated chicken flavor and added a steeping step for the fresh herbs to coax out cleaner flavor. If you prefer to use the original recipe, we’ve included it as a tip before the make-ahead and storage instructions.

Pressure-Cooked Blond Chicken Stock