Many recipes call for chicken or vegetable stock but you might be surprised at the ingredients in many of the canned or boxed products – even organic certified.

I decided to cook a whole chicken in my Instant Pot and break down its use in several ways. You can roast it in the oven, cook it in a slow cooker or use a roaster. The great thing about using a pressure cooker like Instant Pot is that you can cook a whole 5lb chicken, from frozen in under 2 hours. Thawed time is only 6min per pound. Don’t forget to remove the giblet bag if there is one. I use those pieces with the bones to flavor the stock I make next.

This is a great guide to get you started.
https://natashaskitchen.com/instant-pot-whole-chicken

Once it’s cooked and cooled – strip the meat off. It should just fall apart easily…

🔹 I cook for an elderly neighbor several days a week and she likes my Indian Butter Chicken so I will use some for that.

🔹 I am going to shred it and make some chicken salad and save some for meals later in the week.

🔹 Once all the chicken was off the carcass – I put the bones back in the pot, added more water, carrots, onion, celery, garlic and fresh herbs and set it to 2hrs cook time. That’s going now.

You can also do this on the stove, in a slow Cooker or in the Instant Pot (or similar). Since you are going to strain out all of the solids (bones, herbs, veggies) you don’t need to be precise cutting them up.

Here is a great resource for that –
https://natashaskitchen.com/chicken-stock-chicken-bone-broth

But what if you want a plant based option – don’t worry – I got you covered there too…

🌿 INSTANT POT ANTI-INFLAMMATORY / IMMUNE BOOSTING HERB STOCK
💥 TOP TIP (Optional)
Add the water to your Instant Pot and set to Saute while you are preparing everything else. This starts bringing the water to temperature before you put the lid on, shortening the time needed to come to pressure.

Season as YOU like – this is what I use…

🔹10 cups Water
🔹1/2 cup Soy Sauce or Liquid Aminos (*optional)
🔹Rosemary
🔹Thyme
🔹Sage
🔹Parsley
🔹Oregano
🔹2tbsp Ground Coriander
🔹2tbsp Ground Tumeric
🔹1tbsp Whole Cumin Seeds
🔹1/2tbsp Pink Himalayan Salt
🔹Black Peppercorns
🔹5 Cloves Garlic
🔹2 Knobs Ginger
🔹2 Sml Jalapeño*

OPTIONAL EXTRAS
🔸Carrot
🔸Onion
🔸Celery

*If you want a spicy stock – add the chopped Jalapeño, seeds and all. You could also add Red Pepper Flakes, but I don’t like them personally.

Add everything to the pot, stir and set to High Pressure 45 min + Natural Release 15 min. This gives the flavor time to develop. Open, cool to room temperature, strain and store.
I freeze in 1 cup servings and keep a bottle in the fridge.

If you find it too strong, strain – keeping all the solids, add more water and make another batch. Combine batches and see if that works better for you.

You could do this on the stove top as well – low simmer for 25-45min for a mild flavor, 45-60 for a denser flavor. Cooking longer can cause it to begin to bitter, so keep on eye on the flavor and remove from the heat when it tastes right to you. It will intensify some after cooling.

Use anywhere it calls for water or stock, for cooking grains or pasta, as a soup base or even drink like a tea. Great for when you’re sick!

Here’s a nice recipe for that:
https://omnomally.com/2015/10/04/immune-boosting-garden-herb-stock

Let me know if you try it or have a favorite recipe to add! #recipe