making my own chicken stock - what am I doing wrong?

[tasmaniandevilchaser]

I have been trying to make my own chicken stock - after the roast, I stick the carcass in the slow cooker, with at least an onion cut up into wedges and a bouquet garni (carrot and celery if I have it). I put it on overnight.

But my stock tastes of nothing! What am I doing wrong?

@bibbitybobbityhat. There's a place for both, but why spend good money on stock cubes (which are mostly salt and flavouring) and throw perfectly useful chicken bones away?

Bibbity,

I can be arsed, partly because I don't have to worry about additives in my own stock but (to be honest, mostly) because I am that fussy. I was a fussy eater when young, and I think I drove my mother to distraction.

Yep - it's a background flavour. One might also call it a flavour on which one builds - very different to, for example, something that gives food a bit of an edge such as herbs or spices

(Yes I know this is a seriously wanky reply. My only defence is that cooking is the the only hobby I can justify these days. It seems useful.)

DH is a Chef and says that my stock is very good. I don't do anything extraordinary, but you don't need to put it in a slow cooker. Using a large pot, chop an onion or two in quarters, sautee in about 3tbsps of olive oil for a bit while you pound about 4 cloves of garlic (garlic on board, knife widthwise down over garlic and punch down with palm of hand, just to bust open the cloves), add 4 carrots, 4 sticks of celery, no leaves as they can make your stock bitter, any bits of other vegetables you have in the fridge that are getting old, ends of broccoli or leftovers even, that sort of thing, stir it about, add carcass, salt, pepper corns, herbs, (whatever you like) bay leaves and add white wine if you have any, or beer even, but neither necessary, just if you have it around, fill with water, bring to a boil, simmer for an hour, strain, put in new pot to reduce to almost half. Occasionally I'll add some chilies. Voila, you have stock. I use ice cube trays to freeze down some too.

I think the problem is the slow cooker.

I often make stock in the pressure cooker, I rarely add in much in the way of other ingredients - as I add them into wathever finished dish I'm doing.

Even half an hour in the pressure cooker gives a tasty stock, an hour gives excellent stock.

One way to tell - if you leave it to go cold is it gelatinous? If not then it hasn't taken on much of the chicken.

yes it does go gelatinous, frenchfancy. I'm starting to think I need a pressure cooker though, but DH will say (quite rightly) that we no more room for more kitchen appliances!

Forgot to add to skim the foam off the top for a nice clear stock.