When you make something tasty in the slow cooker or braise meat in a particularly delicious liquid, what do you do with said liquid or juice from the slow cooker? My freezer is full of little containers with labels such as, “Mex chicken, pork w/vinegar or onion beef.” I usually save my liquids and use them in sauces or as soup bases. I always make sure to have a couple containers of potato water, as well, which is used to thicken soups.
It occurred to me as I was using some leftover chicken braising liquid to make a sauce for chicken spaghetti that I’ve never seen anyone else do this. I’m not even sure how I picked up the habit as my family (the few who cook) doesn’t do this. Are my friends and family just saving this trick for when no one is around or is this limited to my household?
Generally no. It will just sit in the fridge and go unused. If I have a specific use for it the next day I’ll keep it, for instance to make more gravy for leftovers. I do save a lot of solids that can be frozen. Shrimp shells, bones, salmon skin, fish scraps, etc. Those don’t all get used, but they don’t smell up the fridge.
I save everything - leftover liquid, bones (not the gnawed-on ones, but if I boned a chicken or the back is leftover from the roast chicken), bits of marinara, shells, fat, etc. They all are vacuum packed or put in deli containers, labelled & dated, and put in the freezer. Basically anything that is still serve-able (ie not leftover on someone’s plate, leftover in the sense it was a by-product of making something else, or left in the pot) gets saved.
It’s an amazing resource. I’ve made some of my best dishes just from pulling out some of that stuff and throwing it in the pot. Off the top of my head:
black beans cooked with the bones & back of a smoked chicken
Carnitas using the liquid left in the bag after sous-videing dry-rubbed pork ribs for 30+ hours
Sloppy Joe filling made with leftover homemade BBQ sauce
All kinds of interesting beans & rice from leftover meat/bones/stock
Various sauces made with bits & pieces of leftover stock and/or braising liquid
Quiches and other egg dishes with bits of leftover salsa on top
No end of soups and various types of red sauce
And that’s just what I can remember. I can’t imagine life without a good freezer!
I meant to mention that I don’t freeze the liquids because I just don’t end up using them at all. Don’t know why because I will use those solid frozen things about half the time. It might be the lack of handy containers, I’ll have to remember to recall my mindset next time the opportunity arises.
Athena, I’m so glad I’m not the only one who saves everything. I simply can’t see pouring all that delicious flavor down the drain.
TriPolar, I have gallon freezer bags that are my stock bags. Bones and veggie scraps (onion peels and such) go in one and seafood shells in another. When the bags are full, it’s time to make stock. Then those bags get filled with frozen cubes of stock.
I had a couple of mishaps with ziploc type bags. I used to have a vacuum sealer with it’s own heavy duty bags and would use those for leftover soups and the like. I am finding it a little unusual that I save solids and not liquids. Have to get to the bottom of this. Though of all the unusual things I do, this would certainly be the one of least concern.
For what it’s worth, I really like those deli containers. I can buy them in bulk from a local restaurant supply place in three different sizes (1 cup, 2 cups, 4 cups aka 8 oz, 16 oz, 32 oz) and they work GREAT for storing liquids. When I make chicken stock, for example, I freeze it in a variety of sizes so I don’t have to thaw out a huge amount if I only need a half a cup.
You can re-use them a few times, so price-wise, they’re not bad. Plus they’re really handy when you have people over and want to send some leftovers home with them, or bringing stuff to people’s houses, cuz you don’t have to worry about getting the containers back. The only downside is when you show up at people’s houses with deli containers full of potato salad they tend to think you stopped at the deli on the way over, not that you spent all morning making homemade potato salad. :smack:
I may look into buying some of those. Most of my containers are from sour cream or cottage cheese. If I buy something in a resealable container, it is getting washed and saved. I also have the tendency to save stock in big bags and freeze it flat. When I need some, I whack it against the counter and break off a chunk. Not the most accurate method, but great for stress release.
We don’t use the slow cooker often but when we do the liquid always goes in the freezer for future use. I also make barbecue sauce, leftovers of which also go in the freezer. Right now there is at least one BBQ baggie, a baggie from a slow cooked ham, and a repurposed margarine tub with liquid from roast beef.