how to make vegetable stock at home | homemade vegetable broth

There are some things I have never and will never buy from the store: peeled garlic, vegetable stock, and baby carrots.  Peeling garlic does not take forever, chopping carrots into small pieces is not a big deal, and vegetable stock or broth - can be easily made at home.
Spusht | how to make vegetable stock or vegetable broth at home
make vegetable stock / vegetable broth at home
Here's how.
Use potatoes, green beans, cauliflower, capsicum, celery, onions, carrot, green peas, or whatever you wish.

Throw in whatever vegetables chopped randomly you have on hand in a pressure cooker.  Add water just until the vegetables are immersed.  Close the lid, place the whistle, and pressure cook on
- HIGH for ONE whistle to parboil the vegetables, or
- MEDIUM for TWO whistles to boil the vegetables.
pressure cook or boil assorted vegetables to make vegetable stock
pressure cook or boil vegetables on medium or high 
Let the pressure cool down, drain the water in a separate bowl and keep aside.  If you do not have a pressure cooker, you could boil whatever vegetables you want to use - on medium heat for about 30 minutes, then drain.
drain the water from boiled vegetables
drain the water from boiled vegetables 
The drained water is now your simple, fresh, natural, nutritious, unsalted, unadulterated - homemade vegetable stock/broth that can be added to soups, curries, or gravies, and
     a) used in place of water to liquefy
     b) used for flavoring
     c) used because it is nutrition-packed


Spusht | Fresh, nutritious, simple homemade vegetable broth or vegetable stock
homemade vegetable broth / vegetable stock

Q:  What can you do with the remaining vegetables?
Throwing the boiled vegetables away would be the dumbest thing to do.

  • If PARBOILED - the drained vegetables can be used to make a Mixed Vegetable Stir-Fry, or sautéed with rice to make Mixed Vegetable Fried Rice, or the vegetables can be cooked along with Tofu or Paneer, etc.  Or freeze and date them to use the parboiled vegetables later in some casserole dish, may be.
  • IF BOILED - the drained vegetables can be mashed and cooked into a soup, or mash and use to make Pav Bhaji, or mash and form Vegetable Cutlets, etc.  Or freeze and date them to use the boiled vegetables later to add nutrition to another dish, may be.

The vegetable stock (or broth) can be stored in the refrigerator for 4-5 days and can be easily frozen in small cubes or Ziploc bags and stored in freezer for months.  It is a good idea to write down what vegetables were used to make that particular stock.

I do not put herbs when I make vegetable stock, because I may not use those herbs in a recipe I need to use stock in.  I prefer making an all-purpose stock.  This vegetable stock however was a result of pressure cooking vegetables for Pav Bhaji, for which I needed potatoes.  You could omit potatoes when making the basic vegetable stock but they do add the starchiness that thickens the soup or gravy.  


Q:  What is the difference between vegetable stock and vegetable broth?
A:  Mostly stock and broth are terms referred to the ones made and used with meat.  Quick Google search shows several discussions over this question as stock being 'combination of vegetables/animal parts/herbs boiled in water' and broth being 'seasoned stock' or 'flavored stock' - probably with salt and other seasonings added to it.  Another discussion also explains as stock is made with bones whereas broth is made with actual pieces of meat.  While people generally use the terms stock and broth, as well as the product, interchangeably in the recipes (referring to meat) - I personally believe there is no difference in vegetable stock and vegetable broth and the both mean the same thing to me.

But I'd like to know your thoughts.
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19 comments:

  1. You have loads of patience, I am bit lazy to do veg broth although it tastes so good.. love your clicks now waiting for a warm soup recipe from u ;-)

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    Replies
    1. no actually most of the times i lack patience, that's why i use pressure cooker to do the work for me ;-)

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  2. Replies
    1. someone obviously did not read the title or the post - this is not soup.

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  3. great recipe :-) can make a nice risotto with the broth

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  4. lovely space you have nisha and happy to follow you.loved all your clicks here

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  5. i buy baby carrot, coz i find chopping them easier.. though i make broth at home, i find the process of picking n chopping veggies super boring :).. but i didnt know the idea of making cubes..i like that,,makes it so handy..will give it a shot soon!

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    Replies
    1. you know what rasi, i read something about baby carrots being processed and chemicals added to preserve that may not be healthy...

      i chop vegetables randomly (see that huge piece of cauliflower?) because it's all going to pressure cook and get mashed anyway, why the extra mehnat right? :D

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  6. P.S i loved the reply to the comment above .. Seriously ppl :P..they forget its u lol :P

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    Replies
    1. you know how they say ... "as you sow, so shall you reap" ;)

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  7. In my opinion vegetable stock and vegetable broth are the same. I prefer homemade stock to the readily available ones. The only ready thing I buy are the canned pineapples or litchies (they are not always available here)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aha, we think alike :)
      Thanks for the comment, Rachana!

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  8. nice post... just love it

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  9. I don't use vegetable broth or stock in any of my cooking but if I did I'd likely make my own like you did! Much easier to control the salt content.

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    Replies
    1. Totally Ameena, the salt and the unnecessary preservatives.
      Thanks for dropping by!

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  10. looks lovely & delicious...mouthwatering!

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    Replies
    1. this vegetable stock looks delicious? mouthwatering?
      are you serious?

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