How much did you pay for the last can of chicken stock you bought in the store?

$1.00?
$2.00?
$$ more?

The last time I bought chicken stock in the store, I paid $4.00 for two 32 ounce cartons. Now, that might not seem like much if you only use stock a couple of times a year.

But…

If you use it often, it can really add up!

And honestly, why buy it when you’re chicken is going to make it for you for free?!

I recently picked up the e-book Easy Homemade: Homemade Pantry Staples for the Busy Modern Family. Inside was a wonderful suggestion for making your own homemade chicken stock and I decided to take the idea and make my own chicken stock.

Of course, I didn’t follow the recipe…I never do.

Making chicken stock is a very SIMPLE process; however, it is not something you can do in a few minutes.

From start to finish, it took 2 full days to complete this project…even though it only takes about 1 hour of actual work. The rest is just wait time…

But, when it was done, I yielded:

• 2 meals worth of white meat (for a family of 4)
• 1 meal worth of dark meat
• 12 pints chicken stock

If I had to buy that much meat or that much stock separately, in the store, it could easily cost $50.00 or more!

Read on to learn how to make your own and then decide if your time is worth the savings…I know you will make the right choice.

Here’s what I did –

How to Make Your Own Homemade Chicken Stock

Day 1 – Morning – Prepare the recipe.

Feel free to follow my recipe or use any recipe you like for chicken in a slow cooker.

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Homemade Chicken Stock

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Ingredients

• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1 whole chicken (approx. 5 lbs.)
• 2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

Instructions

1. Lay the lemon slices in the bottom of a slow cooker.
2. Place the chicken on top of the lemon slices.
3. Sprinkle the chicken with poultry seasoning and chopped garlic.
4. Turn slow cooker on low temperature (8 - 10 hours) and cover.

Here’s a great recipe for Crockpot Whole Chicken from The Little Kitchen, too!

Day 1 – Evening – Clean up the meat.

When the slow cooker is done cooking, remove the chicken from the pot and place on a serving platter or large cutting board and allow it to cool for 10 minutes or so.

Pour the juices from the pot into a large metal strainer with a large bowl below to collect the stock.

Pour the stock into clean, sterilized pint jars, leaving 1″ of head space at the top of each jar. Cover and allow to cool on the counter.

Remove the skin from the chicken and place it back into the slow cooker. Cut the breast meat from the chicken and store in 2 freezer bags or containers. Pull the dark meat from the bones and store in a separate bag or container.

Place the jars of stock and bags of chicken meat into the freezer. Store for up to 1 year.

Return the chicken carcass to the slow cooker. Cover with water and turn on low for another 8 to 10 hours (overnight).

Day 2 – Morning – Cook Down Your Stock.

Pour the entire contents of the slow cooker into a metal strainer with a bowl underneath to collect the stock.

Pour the stock into clean, sterilized pint jars, leaving 1″ of head space at the top of each jar. Cover and allow to cool on the counter.

Return the bones and skin to the slow cooker and cover with water again. (I added 1 chicken bullion cube at this point, but that isn’t necessary – it just adds more flavor to the final batch of stock). Turn on low and cook for an additional 8 hours.

Day 2 – Evening – Store Your Stock.

Pour the contents of the slow cooker into the strainer with bowl collector. Discard the fat and bones from the chicken. 

Pour the remaining chicken stock into clean, sterilized pint jars, leaving 1″ of head space at the top of each jar. Cover and allow to cool on the counter.

Place the remaining jars of stock into the freezer with the others. Store for up to 1 year.
 

Here’s the numbers –

• $7.48 – 1 whole chicken
• $0.42 – 1 lemon
• $0.15 – 2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
• $0.14 – 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

Total Cost –  $8.19

So, for $8.19, I made the basis of 3 meals, plus yielded 12 jars of chicken stock.  At that price, the cost of a jar of stock is roughly $0.54 per pint! 

You can’t beat this price!

I think this is the way I’ll be going for the future – No more $2.00 cartons of stock for me! 

Do you buy stock or make your own? After reading this, do you think you’re more likely to try making your own?

You might also like:

• Homemade Freezer Biscuits from Scratch
• Make Your Own Individual Cheese Pizza for the Freezer
• Homemade Chicken Nuggets for the Freezer: Your Kids Will Love These!

Vanessa Hamlin

Vanessa Hamlin is the owner and founder of Food Life Design and VLHamlinDesign. With her passion for frugal living and homesteading, Vanessa loves to write about easy recipes, making money, gardening, home remedies and everything else that a good life entails! When she’s not writing for Food Life Design or creating products for VLHamlinDesign, you’ll find Vanessa reading, drawing, gardening, cooking or spending time with her family.