5 lb meat, with bones and fat. I find that short ribs [beef, veal, or pork], and wings and backs of fowl make great stock meat.
4 cloves garlic, split
2 large onions, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
3/4 cup butter
4 bay leaves
1 teaspoon each marjoram, basil, oregano, savory, thyme
Place meat in a large, flat baking dish, and roast at 450 degrees for one hour. Remove from oven, and place all the meat, plus any rendered fat, and the garlic and herbs in the stock pot. Fill the pan with hot water, and return to the oven to deglaze. Pour the water into the stock pot. Melt 1/4 cup butter, and saute the onions until dark golden brown; put in the stock pot. Melt 1/4 cup butter, saute the celery until it begins to brown, put in the stock pot. Melt the remaining 1/4 cup butter, saute the carrots until they begin to brown, put in the stock pot. Fill the stock pot with water. Cover, and simmer for 6-8 hours. Strain out the large debris in a colander, return liquid to the pot, and cook, uncovered, on low heat until reduced to 1 gallon of volume. Remove from the heat, and chill overnight. Skim off all fat, strain through cheesecloth, and return to low heat. Cook until reduced to 1 quart. Pour into ice cube trays, freeze, then store the cubes in an airtight freezer container. One cube will reconstitute to 2 cups of very rich stock.
For ‘I don’t want to cook tonight soup’, add 1/4 cup acini de pepe [or quick-cooking rice] to 2 cups boiling water, simmer for 10 min, add 1 cup mixed frozen vegetables, and 1 stock cube, bring to a boil, and serve.
For perfect gravy, melt 2 Tablespoons butter, add 2 Tablespoons flour, and make a roux. Remove from heat, mix in 2 cups water or milk, 1 stock cube, bring to a boil, and serve.