Food & Cooking Recipes Soups, Stews & Stocks Soup Recipes How to Make Easy Turkey Stock 3.8 (28) Don't throw away those turkey scraps just yet! Add the bones to onions, carrots, and celery to make this lovely turkey stock recipe. Close Prep Time: 15 mins Total Time: 3 hrs Yield: 6 quarts Jump to recipe Homemade turkey stock is an economical and sustainable way to use turkey bones and scrap vegetables rather than letting them go to waste. Plus, the homemade version tastes richer and more flavorful than the boxed version found in grocery stores. To make the flavorful stock, use the bones from a roast turkey left over from Thanksgiving or other big meal, or ask your local butcher for turkey bones with some meat still on them (they'll often sell you a few pounds of bones for just a few dollars). The other ingredients needed—whole carrots, yellow onions, celery stalks, black peppercorns, and fresh parsley—are easy to find and inexpensive. Once made, turkey stock can be used to make homemade pan gravy, stuffing, glazed Brussels sprouts, and even Turkey Meatball Soup. After you prepare your homemade turkey stock, you will have a freezable, low-sodium base for soups, stews, rice dishes, and more. Directions Combine ingredients with water: In a 3-gallon stockpot, combine all ingredients and fill with enough cold water to cover ingredients by 3 inches when submerged (about 6 quarts). If you don't have a large stockpot, use two smaller pots. Simmer and skim: Bring to a rapid simmer over high (do not boil); reduce heat until bubbles barely break the surface. Simmer until flavorful, about 2 hours, skimming stock with a ladle every 30 minutes. Keep the stock at a bare simmer; a hard boil would evaporate too much liquid and make the stock cloudy. Any fat that remains after skimming can be easily removed once the stock is chilled. Strain stock and discard bones: Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve. Discard vegetables. Remove meat from bones and save for another use; discard bones. Let stock cool completely before refrigerating. (To store, refrigerate, up to 1 week, or freeze, up to 6 months.) Freezing and Reheating This recipe can be made up to three months in advance and kept in the freezer until time to use. When transferring the stock from pot to quart containers, leave approximately 1 inch of room at the top, since liquids expand when frozen. To defrost, place the stock in the refrigerator for 24 hours before using.