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I catch a lot of striped bass, and while I love to eat the fillets, I am always more excited about the heads and bones because they make a surpassing fish stock. And to me, fish stock is one of those zephyrs of the food world, a mystical wonderment that lasts only as long as it takes to make and eat it.
Yes, you can store fish stock, and it’s OK, but never as amazing as when it has been freshly made.
So that means I normally find myself making fish risotto or chowder right off the bat when I have a good haul of stripers, Pacific rockfish or lingcod. The fillets get eaten later. Yes, I am aware this is opposite to what most people do. Pretty typical for me.
Fish stock isn’t like normal stock. It’s a fairly quick affair. My venison stock takes all day, or even overnight. All my fish stock asks of you is 45 minutes or so. Strain and enjoy. A long-simmered fish stock gets cloudy and bitter and fishy. I don’t recommend it.
What fish? Really almost anything. I’ve made fish stock with bass, walleye, perch, black seabass, white seabass, lingcod, Pacific rock cod, stripers, tilefish, porgies, redfish, sea trout, spotted bass, bluegills… you get the point.
Be sure to rinse the heads and bones well to remove slime, and be absolutely certain to snip our the gills. Gills in your stock will ruin it, as the blood in them will cloud your stock and give it an “off” flavor very quickly.
Homemade Fish Stock
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 large carrot, chopped
- 1 fennel bulb, chopped (optional)
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- Salt
- 2 cups white wine or vermouth
- 2 to 5 pounds of fish bones and heads
- A handful of dried mushrooms (optional)
- 2 to 4 bay leaves
- 1 star anise pod (optional)
- 1 to 2 teaspoons dried or fresh thyme
- 3 or 4 pieces of dried kombu kelp (optional)
- Chopped fronds from the fennel bulb
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chopped vegetables and cook, stirring often, until they are all soft, but not browned. This should take about 10 minutes or so.
- Add the white wine and all the remaining ingredients, plus enough water to cover everything by about an inch or two. Bring to a simmer, then drop the heat to a bare shimmy, about 175°F if you want to be precise. It should not boil under any circumstances, and keep an eye on things to ensure that it doesn't. Simmer like this for 45 minutes to 1 hour, no more.
- Turn the heat as low as it will go. Set a fine mesh strainer over a big bowl, then put a piece of paper towel or cheesecloth in the strainer. Ladle the stock through this set-up into the bowl. When you get to the bottom, skip the dregs down there, as they will be filled with sediment. The stock will never be as good as it is right now, but it can be refrigerated for up to a week and frozen for up to 6 months.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi, would catfish bones make a good fish stock?
Crystal: Yes, but catfish can be oily, so either chill the finished stock and skim off the fat, or enjoy it within a week or so. It can get fishy otherwise.
Hank, thanks for all the great recipes.
I’ve used this recipe before and enjoyed it very much. I’d like to make it more often but it’s usually getting late by the time I’ve got the fish cleaned and I don’t particularly feel like starting the stock that night.
Is it permissible to store the heads and bones in the fridge for a day or two until I’m ready to make the broth? Can they be frozen for longer storage without consequence? Thanks, John
John: Absolutely! I do that all the time.
Made this with 5 lbs of red fish heads and bones. Used greens from the fennel but not the bulb and didn’t use star anise because didn’t have it. Was a bit unsure of how much to salt. Ended up using about 2 Tbs salt for 7 liters of finished broth. The long simmer created a nice flavor that will be a good background for my soups and chowders this winter. Looking forward to using it today as I make Portuguese fish stew and freezing the rest. Thanks!
Delicious! Happy with it.. my hubby was so impressed as well with the flavor.. thanks!
Oh no! I made the mistake of leaving it on a higher temp than recommended. Why is it so important to keep it on a low boil the entire time? Thanks!!
Hannah: Because it will get cloudy, chalky and fishy. If you just barely let it simmer, steep really, the flavors are cleaner and so is your stock.
32 1 cup servings!?!
Please tell me this is an error.
Monika: It is correct. That’s 2 gallons of stock. You can go with 1 gallon if you want, for a stronger stock.
Hi Hank I thought I had followed everything to a T but my stock has no flavor other than anise I can’t taste the fish I ended up with 3 1/4 qts stock and see your recipe was for 1 qt I used 2 1/4 lbs bones grad etc and thought I had used the right amount of water to just cover the bones but clearly I must have used too much I was going to start over -sauté carrots celery and onion and add few lbs of bones I still have in the freezer and add some of the stock I just made instead of water as well as wine but my concern is that this would be considered boiling my previous weak stock too long Suggestions?
Josie: Nope, you can use the weak stock as a base for the new one. These stocks should only require 45 minutes or so to get flavorful.
Awesome!