Roasted Beef Bone Stock

Steps

1. Heat the oven to 425°F with a rack in the middle.
   425°F
2. Toss the bones with the oil in a roasting pan and spread them in one layer.

   Roast (how to roast)

   Roast Cook food uncovered in a hot oven so the outside browns while the inside cooks through. 1. Heat the oven fully before the food goes in, usually 400 to 450°F for vegetables.2. Toss vegetables with oil and salt; dry and season meat.3. Spread everything out on a sheet pan or in a roasting pan with room around each piece.4. Roast, turning vegetables once halfway, until browned at the edges.5. For meat, check the center with a thermometer. Done when: Vegetables are browned at the edges and tender in the middle; meat reaches its safe temperature. Safety: Use dry oven mitts (wet ones pass heat straight through) and tilt hot pans away from you to avoid the fat and steam.How to roast meat and vegetables: mistakes to avoid

   until they start to brown.
   425°F⏱ Roast bones: 30 min
3. Smear the tomato paste over the bones with a spoon and scatter the onions, carrots and celery around them. Roast until the bones and vegetables are deep brown.
   425°F⏱ Roast again: 30 min
4. Move the bones and vegetables to a large stockpot with tongs. Pour the 1 cup water into the hot pan and

   scrape up the browned bits (how to deglaze)

   Deglaze Pour liquid into a hot pan and scrape up the browned bits stuck to the bottom, which hold a lot of flavor. 1. After browning, pour off all but a spoonful of fat.2. With the pan still hot, pour in wine, broth or water; it will sizzle and steam.3. Scrape the bottom with a wooden spoon or flat spatula until the brown layer dissolves.4. Let it bubble down, as the recipe says, into the base of a sauce. Done when: The bottom of the pan is clean and the liquid has turned brown and tasty. Safety: Take the pan off the flame before pouring in wine or spirits, and turn your face away from the steam.How to deglaze a pan: mistakes to avoid

   with a wooden spoon, then add it to the pot.
5. Add the cold water, garlic, thyme, bay leaves and peppercorns. Bring to a gentle

   boil (how to boil)

   Boil Heat liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. 1. Use a pot big enough that the water fills it no more than three quarters.2. Cover it to boil faster, over high heat.3. Salt pasta or vegetable water once it boils.4. Add the food, stir, and bring it back to a boil before you start timing. Done when: A rolling boil keeps bubbling hard even when you stir. Safety: Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove, and drain pasta into a colander in the sink, pouring away from you. Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to boil water for pasta and vegetables: mistakes to avoid

   over medium-high heat, skimming off the foam as it rises.
   ⏱ Bring to a boil: 25 min
6. Lower the heat until only a few bubbles break the surface and

   simmer (how to simmer)

   Simmer Cook liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles breaking the surface now and then. 1. Bring the liquid up over medium-high heat.2. As soon as bubbles rise steadily, turn the heat down.3. Adjust until only a few small bubbles break the surface every second or two.4. Stir now and then and check that it hasn't crept back to a boil. Done when: You see lazy, small bubbles, not a rolling boil. A "bare" simmer has just a bubble here and there. Safety: Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to simmer: mistakes to avoid

   uncovered for 5 to 6 hours, skimming now and then and adding water if the bones poke out. Any meat on the bones passes 145°F (63°C) early on; the long simmer is for flavor and body.
   ⏱ Simmer stock: 5 hr
7. Ladle the stock through a fine-mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth into a large bowl and throw away the solids.
8. Set the bowl in a sink of ice water and stir now and then until lukewarm, then cover and refrigerate within 2 hours of cooking.
   ⏱ Cool stock: 30 min

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Tips

• Ask the meat counter for soup bones. Knuckle and neck bones give the most body, and a meaty shank adds flavor.
• Refrigerate the stock overnight and lift off the fat that sets on top before you use it.
• There is no salt on purpose; season the soup or sauce you make with it.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze up to 3 months.

Make ahead

Freeze the stock in 1- or 2-cup containers so you can thaw just what a recipe needs.

Cook once, eat twice: It makes 12 servings: eat half and freeze the rest. It keeps 3 months frozen, by the storage note above. Print a freezer label · More freezer meals

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage. In season: carrots (September to March).