Let’s be real…store-bought stock tastes like crap! (And most of it is full of crappy ingredients, too! Ewww!)

I’ve made my own stock at home for many years. And, although it takes all day to be ready, I’ve always felt it was worth it. (Because…seriously, that store-bought stuff is naaaa…aaaa..aaaa…sty!)

Homemade stock is so incredibly tasty that I usually slurp down an entire cup (or 2) of it as soon as it’s ready. (In fact, I’m drinking some right now while the rest of the batch cools down for the soup I’m making with it tomorrow. Mmmmm….mmmmmm….mmmmm!)

I used to make my stock in a crock pot, but then I got myself an awesome new gadget that has revolutionized my stock-making experience!

Behold, the Instant Pot – a super convenient pressure cooker that cooks up my yummy homemade stock in just 2 hours start-to-finish! Score!!!

Instant Pot Chicken Stock

Makes about 12 cups

INGREDIENTS:

1 chicken carcass (the bones leftover from a roasted chicken; no skin)*

1 medium onion, chopped into large pieces (you can leave the skin on)

2 carrots, broken into large chunks

Celery, broken into large chunks (OPTIONAL) – I used to use a couple stalks, or just the tops/scraps from 1 bunch of celery…but now I prefer to skip the celery.

1 head garlic (no need to peel…just cut the head in half to expose the cloves, and toss it in)

2 TBSP dried Thyme

2 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1/2 TBSP whole peppercorns

1 heaping TBSP sea salt

Water

*If your chicken included a neck and/or innards (organs) that you aren’t going to cook, freeze those and toss them into the pot along with the carcass when you make this stock.

DIRECTIONS:

Toss all ingredients into a 6-quart Instant Pot.

Add water to fill pot to the 2/3 full line (or “PC Max” line).

Lock the lid and move the steam release valve to the “Sealing” position.

Pressure Cook on High for 1 hour.

You can go longer for richer flavor, but I’ve found that 60 minutes is plenty. I’ve even pushed it to just 45 minutes with success when I’m in a rush.

*Also note, it may take about 30 minutes for the Instant Pot to reach pressure for this recipe because there’s so much liquid involved. So keep that in mind when figuring how long the entire process will take – – about 2 full hours or so of TOTAL Instant Pot time. 

Allow pressure to release naturally for at least 30 minutes.

Then, carefully move the steam release valve to “venting.” Be prepared just in case any liquid comes splattering out! It’s never happened to me, but a towel in hand is always good…just in case.

Wait for the floating valve in the lid to drop, and then remove the lid.

Using a very fine meshed strainer, strain the stock into a very large bowl or pot (see pics below).

Drink or use immediately or store in fridge or freezer for later use.