Ingredients
Stock vegetables and aromatics
- 250 g yellow onion peeled and cut into 2–3 cm pieces
- 200 g carrots scrubbed and cut into 2–3 cm pieces
- 150 g celery rinsed and chopped
- 100 g white mushrooms cleaned and quartered
- 100 g leek white and light green parts, washed between layers and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves about 6 g, peeled and lightly crushed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 0.5 tsp black peppercorns
- 2 liters cold water plus freshly boiled water to adjust the final yield if necessary
Equipment
- Large stockpot
- Fine-mesh strainer
- Heatproof bowl or second pot
- Measuring jug
- Shallow food storage containers
Instructions
Simmer and strain
- Rinse the vegetables under running water. Wash the leek thoroughly between its layers. Trim damaged areas and cut the vegetables into roughly 2–3 cm pieces.
- Put all ingredients into a large pot with 2 liters of cold water. Bring just to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer.
- Simmer partly covered for 45 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and the liquid tastes gently savory. Avoid a vigorous boil.
- Ladle through a fine-mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl or second pot. Let the vegetables drain without pressing them into the liquid. Discard the solids and bay leaf.
- Measure the liquid. Adjust to 1.5 liters with freshly boiled water if short, or briefly simmer to reduce excess liquid. Leave unsalted and season in the recipe where it will be used.
- Use immediately or divide into shallow containers and cool promptly, using an ice bath if helpful. Refrigerate within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 90°F/32°C. Keep at 40°F/4°C or below and use within 3 days, or freeze. Bring refrigerated stock to a rolling boil when reheating.
Nutrition
Calories: 10kcalCarbohydrates: 2.1g
Video
Notes
Instructional video: Gennaro Contaldo on Jamie Oliver’s Food Tube, “How To Make Vegetable Stock | 1 Minute Tips,” published July 8, 2015. This original pre-Shorts video demonstrates chopping vegetables, simmering and straining. This card adds mushrooms, leek and dried aromatics, omits the video’s oil and uses a shorter 45-minute simmer with a measured 1.5-liter yield.
Nutrition is a rough estimate per 250 ml, using the Swanson prepared vegetable-stock label (10 kcal and 2 g carbohydrate per 240 ml) as a rough commercial-stock proxy for the strained liquid. It does not total the raw vegetables, which are discarded. Zero protein and fat reflect the representative label’s rounding; sodium, fiber and micronutrients are not estimated. Extraction and final concentration vary; this is not a laboratory analysis.
Cost planning allowances: onion US$0.40, carrots US$0.30, celery US$0.30, mushrooms US$0.60, leek US$0.60, garlic and dried aromatics US$0.20, totaling US$2.40. Water and utilities excluded; actual prices vary.