Why didn't my turkey stock gelatinize?
We made turkey stock of out our Thanksgiving scraps. We simmered the turkey bones (unroasted) and all the vegetable trimmings for about 7 hours, and then chilled everything and stashed it in the refrigerator overnight.
But the chilled stock doesn't have any jelly-like thickness to it. It's pretty much a tan-colored liquid.
Without the gelatin-induced thickness, is this a failed stock? Can we use this "pseudo-stock" when a recipe calls for stock?
Best Answer
My best guess is that your stock is very weak. Two gallons of water to just the bones from one turkey will not be a strong stock.
It may well well have gelatin in it, but very thin.
I make stock for a single turkey with the wing tips (not the 'drumstick' part), the back, the neck--everything but the breast and leg/thighs in with about 1 gallon of water to start, which reduces to several quarts over the course of three-four hours.
This produces a very shaky jelly--much thinner than the one in a jar of Smuckers for example.
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Why did my turkey broth congeal?
It turns out that if your turkey stock turns into a jelly-like consistency after it's been cooled in the fridge, you've made your stock perfectly. Apparently the bones have collagen inside of them, and when you simmer that collagen for a long time, it breaks down into gelatin.Why did my stock not gel?
Use Just Enough Water Adding too large a volume of water to a small amount of bones will yield a thin broth that won't gel properly. You'll extract the collagen from the bones you use, but it will be too dilute to give you a solid gel. Fill your pot with bones, and cover them with clean water by two inches.How long does it take to reduce turkey stock?
Once boiling, reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Simmer until reduced by half, 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Strain. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl.Why Didn't You Stop Me?
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Answer 2
If you heat some up, and add a little salt, does it taste good? Then its a successful stock.
If you want it to be thicker/stronger, simmer it a while to reduce it. As SAJ14SAJ says, that's a fairly large amount of water vs. the amount of bones.
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