Beef Consomme and a Stir Fry

After roasting the beef soup bones on Monday, I made stock on Tuesday in preparation for making consomme on Wednesday. I already had plans for some of the consomme: a hearty beef vegetable soup. But first, a quick run through of the stock/consomme process.

The elements of the stock.

One tablespoon of tomato paste and a slice of beef were added for additional flavor.

After simmering for 8 hours, the stock is finished. After cooling, it is transferred to the refrigerator.

The next day the solid fat is discarded and the stock is reheated, egg whites are added to one cup of the cold stock before being mixed into the rest of the stock. Check here for details of the consomme process.

And now for something completely different. As it was just my daughter and me for dinner, I decided a stir fry was in order. I made a marinade for a pork loin chop. The chop was cut into thin strips and marinated for about an hour in a mixture of soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, canola oil, chili paste, honey, grated ginger, grated garlic and red pepper flakes. Cornstarch will later be added to the marinade to make a sauce.

The vegetables for the stir fry.

Regardless of what a certain Food Network host would tell you, these are chopped vegetables, not pre-chopped. See the previous picture for a photo of pre-chopped (whole) vegetables.

The meat is quickly seared and removed from the pan.

After the vegetables have been sauteed, the meat is added in. Then the marinade with the cornstarch is added to the pan.

At the last moment, I added cooked noodles and then plated. This was a good and easy dinner. Too bad my husband doesn't appreciate such fare.

Stock becomes Consomme

After allowing my turkey stock to chill overnight, I brought it out today to finish the job and turn the stock into a luxurious consomme.

The turkey stock comes out of the refrigerator.

Hee, hee. I made turkey jelly.

Following Rosie Hawthorne's excellent directions, I work on turning stock into consomme. Here we wait for the stock with the egg whites to come to a simmer. Not looking too appetizing here, I must say.

Whereas the stock-making process is mostly a hands-off event, only passing through the kitchen once in a while to add more water to the pot, consomme making is definitely a hands-on procedure. The mixture must be stirred constantly until it reaches a certain point. And then a kitchen timer must be utilized in order to continue the process. Time consuming? Yes. Worth it? Definitely.

And, drum roll, please... the finished product. I set aside two cups in anticipation of making turkey gravy for tomorrow's dinner.

Once the stock/consomme is cooking away on its own, I start work on a Broccoli, Bacon and Dried Cranberry salad for tonight's dinner. In this bowl are bite sized broccoli florets, diced red onion, sliced cooked bacon and dried cranberries.

To this I have added a dressing made from mayonnaise, white vinegar and sugar. I tend to do this by taste, rather than by following a specific recipe.

Many thanks again to the kitchen wizardry of Rosie Hawthorne! Thank you for pushing me to become a better home cook.