So last November, Black Friday to be more specific, I bought myself a little present. I impulse bought an Instant Pot, at a hefty 35% discount, I might add. I’ve been experimenting with the Instant Pot for a few months and the other day I made my first Instant Pot Chicken Stock. OMG. You guys. This is the best chicken stock I’ve ever made. The extra pressure during cooking really pulls out so much more flavor and collagen to make an ultra rich broth.
What is an Instant Pot?
Instant Pots are a 7-in-1 magical cooking device (or a pressure cooker) that also does a bunch of other cool stuff. These all-in-one devices have been taking the cooking world by storm for the past five years. I had already been on the market to buy a pressure cooker and the wide array of other features this one offered sold me instantly (no pun intended).
I bought an Instant Pot primarily to make cooking dry beans and “slow cooked” meat faster, and didn’t really intend to post about it much on Budget Bytes. You see, I don’t want to give anyone the false impression that you need fancy, expensive equipment to make good food, because you absolutely DO NOT. This machine is just fun and makes life a little faster and easier. For everything else, I still prefer to cook on the stove top or just take the long route with a slow cooker.
What is the Difference Between Chicken Stock and Chicken Broth?
Both chicken stock and chicken broth are made by simmering chicken parts in water with other flavorful ingredients. Chicken stock tends to be richer, which comes from cooking the broth with more bones and connective tissues (sometimes called “bone broth”). Since the bones and connective tissue have a lot more collagen than chicken broth, chicken stock will sometimes be a gel when chilled instead of liquid. They can usually be used interchangeably in recipes, but chicken stock will give you a lot more flavor.
Can I Make Chicken Broth Without An Instant Pot?
You can absolutely make chicken stock or broth on the stove top or in a regular (and inexpensive) slow cooker. I’ve made tutorials for both in the past: How to Make Chicken Broth (stove top) and How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Broth. With both of those methods, just keep in mind that the longer the cook, the better.
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Stock
Ingredients
- 1 rotisserie chicken carcass
- 1 yellow onion
- 1-2 carrots
- 1-2 stalks celery
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- Freshly cracked pepper or whole peppercorns
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 8 cups water
- 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot on to Sauté mode. Add the chicken carcass pieces and sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until browned and pieces begin to stick to the bottom of the pot. Press the cancel button to turn off the heat.
- Cut the ends off the onion, then cut it in half or into quarters. Remove any of the papery skin if it has dirt on it, otherwise leave the skin on. Scrub the carrots and celery. Cut them in half so they fit easily within the pot. Peel the garlic cloves and add them to the pot with the bay leaves, some freshly cracked pepper (or 10-15 whole peppercorns, if available), and a splash of apple cider vinegar.
- Pour 8 cups of cool water over the contents of the pot (do not fill more than 2/3 to the top). Lock the lid into place, close the steam release valve, and press the “manual” button. The display will show 30, indicating the default time set for that mode. We want it to cook for 30 minutes, so no need to adjust the time. After 10 seconds the display will turn to “ON” indicating that it is heating and pressure is building (this takes about 10-15 minutes).
- Once the pot has reached high pressure, the display will begin to count down 30 minutes. When 30 minutes is up, it will beep and switch to “keep warm” mode. Press the cancel button and allow the pressure in the pot to reduce naturally (this takes about 15 minutes). You’ll know the pressure is at a safe level and it’s okay to open the pot when the silver float valve on the lid has fallen down and is no longer elevated. Open the steam release valve, then carefully open the lid.
- Place a fine wire mesh strainer over a large bowl, then ladle the stock into the bowl through the strainer to catch any pieces. When the level gets too low to ladle, remove the large pieces and carefully pour the remaining liquid through the strainer. Taste the stock and add salt if desired.
- Place the stock in an air-tight container and refrigerate until completely cool. Keep the stock refrigerated and use within three days, or freeze for longer storage.
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Equipment
Notes
How to Make Chicken Stock in an Instant Pot – Step by Step Photos
We’ve bought a few rotisserie chickens lately and instead of tossing the carcass, we put the WHOLE thing into a freezer bag and “tossed” it into the freezer. This one had a few pieces of chicken still left that we didn’t get around to eating. I think using a rotisserie chicken added extra flavor because everything had already been slow roasted.
Press the “Sauté” button, which will heat the bottom of the pot like a hot plate. Add the chicken pieces and sauté for a few minutes, or until they begin to brown and stick to the bottom of the pot.
See how it’s browned and stuck to the bottom? Those browned bits will add a LOT of flavor to the broth. Now press the “cancel” button to turn off the heat.
I haven’t had many vegetable scraps lately, so I bought a carrot and some celery fresh, but you can save your vegetable scraps in a freezer bag the same way we saved our chicken carcass, and then use them for the stock (just make sure to clean them REALLY well). Because I didn’t have any scraps this time around, I used one big carrot, two stalks of celery, one yellow onion (with peel but dirty ends cut off) and two cloves of garlic. I also added two bay leaves, a splash (about 1 tsp) of apple cider vinegar, and some freshly cracked pepper. I thought I had whole peppercorns in my pantry, but I was wrong, but a little cracked pepper did the job just fine.
Add 8 cups water, or enough to cover the chicken by a couple of inches, but do NOT fill the pot more than 2/3 full.
Lock the lid into place and close the steam valve. Press the “Manual” button, which is just the basic pressure cooker function. The display will show 30 minutes, which is the default time set for that mode. We want 30 minutes, so no need to press + or – to adjust the time. After 10 seconds, the display will switch to “On” and it will begin to heat. Once it reaches the proper heat and pressure (after about 10-15 minutes), the display will begin to count down 30 minutes.
After cooking at high pressure for 30 minutes, it will beep and switch to “Keep Warm” mode. Press the cancel button and allow the pressure to come down naturally (this takes about 15 minutes). You’ll know the pressure is at a safe level when the silver float valve on top has fallen back down and is no longer elevated. Open the steam valve first, then open the lid. This is what you’ll see. :) And oh my, does it ever smell amazing!
To separate the liquid gold from the debris, just place a fine wire mesh sieve over a large bowl and ladle the stock through the sieve. For extra filtering, you can use cheese cloth, but I found that the mesh sieve worked fine. When you get down towards the bottom of the pot, just remove the large pieces and carefully pour the rest through the sieve.
Taste the stock and add salt if you prefer. I added about 1/2 tsp. Refrigerate the stock and use within three days, or freeze for longer storage. I filled two containers like this before placing it in the refrigerator to cool. Separating it into smaller containers helps it cool faster.
I’m not kidding when I say that this stock was so good that I wanted to just drink it like a beverage. And I might just do that next time because apparently it’s really good for you. I ended up using it to make more Matzo Ball Soup yesterday, but it would also be really good for making chicken pho or ramen. This Instant Pot Chicken Stock was super thick and flavorful, and gelled up nicely when cooled. That’s how you know you got all the good stuff out of the bones! :D
Is it silly that I think it’s beautiful??
Great recipe!
If you really want a crystal clear brother, use a protein clarifying raft.
I use Egg Whites and egg shells. Stir the crushed egg shells into the egg whites (I use about 1/2 a cup (from the egg whites carton!) Pour it into the cool stock and gradually drizzle into the broth. On a medium burner, gradually bring the broth up to a good simmer. Stirring the broth in a circular motion. You’ll see that albumin starting to denature. As it does this, it will adsorb the fine particulates that make the broth cloudy. After 1/2hr or so, let it cool, straining through multiple layers of cheese cloth. The broth will be crystal clear! Enjoy – Doug
This is great stuff! Love the idea of sauteing the chicken first. It adds so much flavor! I did it for even longer, added a drop of oil, and threw in 5 cloves of garlic cut in half for a quick saute too! I added two cups of the water before turning off the pot and adding the rest of the ingredients,. I scraped up the lovely browned bits from the bottom, and stirred to mix it all in. Then I added the rest of the ingredients and water. So easy and so delish! Now I’m going to make a version of Italian Wedding Soup (there are so many!) Yay! Thanks for sharing.
Wow excellent!😀
Very tasty and very easy. I used vegetable scraps from other recipes that I had frozen to use when I made stock. And I didn’t even saute the chicken and it still had a great flavor. Will make again!
I like Ramen , make it many times , i make broth as this recept ,
I make also chicken broth without vegetables , there is not much difference , now i make it always without vegetables safe money and work , and taste the same !
Thank you for this recipe! It is freaking delicious!!! I agree you could drink this! I pulled the meat for a chicken pot pie and then used the carcass for this. I didn’t have celery on hand so I opted for the 2 carrots and an extra 1/2 an onion I had lying around. I used 5 cloves of garlic and smashed them, 1 tsp salt, 1-2 Tbs dried parsley, a heavy shake of dried thyme, and added a dried guajillo chili pepper. Everything else was the same. Thanks a ton!
I should also say I used a big soup pot and simmered it for a hour, rather than an instant pot. Thanks again!
I used whey I got from making yogurt instead of the vinegar.
I am excited to try this recipe. I don’t really know how to use my instant pot so this is a good place to start. Mine doesn’t have a manual button so I used the pressure cook button and added some more time. The keep warm button came on. Not sure why so I just turned it off. Hope that was okay. Thanks for the pictures. They really help.
Deb
The Pressure Cook button is the same thing as the Manual button. I think Manual is just an older model. Keep Warm is an automatic function. It’s been about 9 months since you posted so hope you’ve got a lot of use out of your IP since. It’s my favorite kitchen appliance!
Hi Beth and thanks for this helpful recipe. Once I have the broth made, how do I then make chicken noodle soup.
Thanks for your patience with this newbie question, Laurie
Hi Laurie and welcome! You can try this delicious soup here.
Just tried this tonight. I didn’t have any bay leaves but I threw some rosemary in. Came out pretty good. I definitely had to add more than a teaspoon of salt at the end, but my chicken carcass was from a chicken I cooked myself, and I hadn’t used that much salt when I cooked it whole (also in the instant pot). My 2 year old loves soup, so I’m glad I was able to make my own broth! Cans of soup are too expensive!
Is there a reason why you added a tsp of apple cider vinegar?
A little bit of acidity can help brighten flavors. Some also say that a little bit of acid can help break down the bones and connective tissues, helping release more nutrients into the broth, although I’m not sure 1 tsp would be enough to make that happen.
Wow this sounds good. Am wondering if I can freeze celery up for this recipe. I know the texture will be weird but since it’s just for flavoring Do you think it would taste as good as fresh celery?
Yep! I often freeze leftover celery for soups and things where the texture won’t matter in the end product. :)
On my Instant Pot it says” delay start” where yours says “manual”!!! What to do??? So Just used my soup button, hope it works!!
I jus used the pressure cook button. Mine also does not have a manual button.
Love this recipe! In the summer, it is too hot to have broth simmering on the stove all day, so the instant pot is a great option! Thank you for posting.
This is my go to recipe, I always keep the chicken bones and ends of veggies until I have enough to make a batch. So much better than store bought!