Vegetable Stock

Another simple, but foundational component of Tyrian cooking. Carrots, onions, and celery and the key, crucial ingredients, but beyond that the recipe is quite flexible. My mother would often add any extra herbs or vegetables we had into the pot and let it slowly simmer over the fire all day. Vegetable stock is one of those things that never quite turns out the same way twice!

Vegetable Stock
onion and/or onion peel
carrots and/or carrot peel
celery ribs and/or leaves
water
peppercorns

Optional Extras
fennel bulb and/or leaves
asparagus and/or asparagus trimmings/ends
green onion and/or green onion trimmings
bay leaves
thyme
garlic cloves and/or peel
sweet or spicy peppers and/or seeds

Traditionally this would be cooked in a large iron pot over a low fire. However, one of the great conveniences I have discovered since moving here is the "crock pot" or "slow cooker". I highly recommend making use of one of these devices for making stocks of this nature. Simply add all your vegetables to the crock, fill it up with water, and set it to low. Allow 8-10 hours for the flavours to properly develop, then strain out the solids and discard them and the broth is ready for use!

For this rendition of vegetable stock, I used mostly peels and trimmings. The main components were the old standbys of onion, carrot, and celery, but as I also had some fennel, asparagus, green onion, and garlic trimmings, I tossed those in as well rather than see them go to waste.