What's the difference between using stock and water?
I realise this sounds like an odd question. However, to use an example, when I make cottage pie, a lot of recipes suggest using beef stock. Okay, so as I understand making beef stock, you basically take some scrag ends of beef (bones, etc), and boil them. So what's the difference between doing that, and adding the water directly to the cottage pie when you make it?
Best Answer
While the liquid that you end up with in your pie will be similar to beef stock in that it has had beef cooked in it, the difference is that the flavor compounds will have cooked out of the beef already in your dish. This means it's basically just diluting the flavor of your beef.
If you start with stock on the other hand, there is beef flavor is in the stock itself so it's actually adding more flavor compounds to your dish rather than just spreading around the ones already there.
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Should I use water or stock?
Stock adds flavor, color, and richness to your cooking. But it's also time-consuming to make and expensive (well, more expensive than water, anyway). Water, on the other hand is free and readily available\u2014but it doesn't do anything in the flavor department.Do you use water or chicken stock?
Fortunately, we're here to let you in on a game-changing secret: Water makes a more than acceptable replacement for chicken stock in most soups, stews, sauces, and braises. And in many cases, water actually produces a better-tasting result.Can I substitute broth for water?
If you don't have broth on hand and want a little more flavor than just plain water, try subbing in 1 cup of water plus 1 tablespoon of butter for every cup of chicken broth in your recipe.Should you cook beans in broth or water?
Consider cooking your beans in stock instead of water. Vegetable, chicken or beef stock will add a rich depth of flavor; consider chicken stock for cannellini beans, or vegetable stock for lentils. If you use stock, you may want to adjust the amount of salt you add to your beans.Minecraft wait what meme part 131 realistic minecraft Emerald Brush
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Answer 2
Using stock (or broth) has two advantages over plain water:
- It is more flavorful, giving your pie a better, deeper background richness
- It contains gelatin, which may improve the mouth feel of your pie, giving it a thicker, silkier, richer texture
Depending on your particular pie recipe's filling, this may not make a huge amount of difference, or it could be the difference between a so-so and a great pie.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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