STOCKS – FOND (FRENCH)

Stocks form the base ingredient for various dishes in almost all cuisines available
globally, each having their stock prepared in their own way to enhance the flavour
and taste of the dish prepared. We have seen traditional dishes of Oriental
Cuisine (cuisine of S.E. Asian countries, like China, Vietnam, Korea, Mongolia,
Vietnam, etc) for which a stock is always required to prepare their dishes. Trace of
evidence can be found in the Indian Cuisine, with dishes like Yakhni Pulao, a
Kashmiri favourite, where Yakhni refers to the mutton stock prepared with
aromatics, which gives the main flavouring to the dish. A stock can be defined as
an aromatic and nutritive liquid obtained by simmering ingredients mainly bones
and flavouring vegetables in water for a period of time which varies due to the
type and size of the ingredients. The uses of stock is varied and is widely used as
the foundation liquid in making soups, sauces, essence, glazes, etc. For delicately
flavoured fish stock, the simmering should not exceed 20 minutes, for white stock
around 45 minutes and for brown stock around six to eight hours, or else all
flavours and nutrients will be lost, thus losing the objective of cooking. On boiling
the stock there is also a chance of making the stock cloudy, i.e., not clear as it
should appear. Stocks generally have 3 elements, water, bones and vegetables,
where the flavours are dissolved in water, which is the medium used to make a
stock. The type of bones will depend on the dish to be prepared, i.e., for a chicken
dish the stock used is preferably chicken to enhance the flavour of the dish. The
bones are sometimes the leftovers of boneless preparations and so only bones
are to be used for making stock. No meat should be used otherwise as meats are
used in preparing dishes and have an economical value. Vegetables are soft in
nature and so while making a brown stock it is advisable to add the vegetables
towards the end and not cooked more than an hour or else they will get mashed
and also impart a bitter taste to the stock. Bones are porous and so prolonged
simmering at low temperature is sometimes the best method. Cooking at high
temperature (boiling) may seal the pores and so not very advisable. Boiling rapidly
may also destroy the nutritive value of the nutrients present and there may be
considerable loss in flavours. It is also important to skim the stock in regular
intervals to remove all dirt and impurities otherwise these impurities may affect
the taste of the stock and also make it cloudy. The flavouring vegetables used for
making stock is generally refered to as mirepoix, which consists of carrots, onions,
leeks and celery. They are cut into rough cuts with their sizes depending on the
nature and time taken for the stock to be ready, i.e., smaller cuts for quick stocks
and larger cuts for stocks taking longer time. Other herbs and spices that are used
are generally peppercorn and bayleaf. These six ingredients are the most common
flavourings in all continental stocks. There are variations in making where the chef
prefers to add certain ingredients as per the nature of the dish. Sometimes
thyme, parsley stalks or mushroom stalks are also added to increase the flavour if
the dish demands such flavours. Sometimes theses herbs are tied in a piece of
cloth, called bouquet garni, for easy removal from the liquid. Once ready with
adequate flavours and aroma, the stock is strained off all the ingredients to a
lightly colour clear liquid with intense flavour and maximum nutrients. This liquid
now becomes the foundation liquid for a number of dishes especially soups,
sauces, essences and glazes.

Types of stock : There are different kinds of stock in the western culinary world.
The following are the most important and popularly used stocks in the hotel
kitchens.

i) White Stock / White Chicken stock : (Fond blanc / Fond de vollaile blanc) :
Preparation of white stock takes the following steps:

a. The bones are blanched to remove any impurity present.

b. Mirepoix is added to the water along with the blanched bones with an optional
use of bouquet

garni. Bones : Mirepoix : Water = 8 : 1 : 12.

ii) Brown Stock (Estouffade) : Authentically made from beef shin bones with
the exception in India where other kinds of bones are substituted for religious
purpose. Preparation of brown stock takes the following steps:

a. The bones should be well cleaned from any dirt and blood before they are
smeared with oil and roasted in a hot oven till they caramelize on the outer
surface and turn brown in colour.

b. The bones are then transferred into cold water and cooked slowly along with
tomato paste for around five hours.

c. The mirepoix vegetables are browned separately and put in the container
containing the bones and

simmered for another hour

iii) Fish Stock (Fumet) : A basic ingredient for making fish sauces and fish
based soups. Preparation of fish stock takes the following steps:

a. Clean the bones thoroughly and cut them into smaller pieces.

b. Sweat the bones, i.e. lightly sauté with very little butter for the flavour to
arouse along with the mirepoix.

c. Add white wine and deglaze the pan.

d. Add cold water and simmer for around 20 minutes.

e. Strain and cool for later use..

iv) Vegetable Stock : As per the definition of stock there should have been no
existence of a vegetable stock as the elements of stock refers to one important
ingredient i.e. bones, addition of which will not make the stock vegetarian. So
vegetable stock it is just a vegetarian option of the stocks prepared without the
use of any bones. The mirepoix remains unchanged in the recipe with the addition
of certain ingredient which forms the main flavouring of the dish. To make a
vegetable Broccoli soup, a vegetable stock is required in which the unwanted
broccoli stalk (stem) can be added for the extra flavour.

v) Emergency Stock : Another type of stock which is very different from the
conventional stocks. When the stocks are made instantaneously by using smaller
cut ingredients, so that the stock is prepared within a very short time. Now-a-days
ready-made stocks are available in the market which when dissolved in water
gives stocks within a minute. They are conveniently used in emergency situations
when time becomes a factor to make a stock initially as a pre-preparatory
producedure. They are not as flavourful as stocks made in orthodox style but
helpful in extreme situations of unavailability.

vi) Essenses and Glazes : Essenses are very strongly flavoured stocks in which
the proportion of the bones are much more than the general quantity used in
making stocks. Thus essences are very strongly flavoured and when used in very
small quantity does the job of large quanties of stock. When these essences are
prepared with limited quantity of liquid and the strongly flavoured liquid is
reduced to a minimum, the gelatin present in the bones makes the product like a
jelly like substance called meat glaze. They are strongly flavoured and are used to
improve the presentation effect of cold meats by giving a brilliant shine to the
meat as well as imparting more flavour to the cold meats as meats generally
tastes bland when served cold. Essences and glazes are used to enhance the
flavour of the prepared sauce which might lack in flavour.
 Important Terms
Court Bouillon : An acidic fish poaching liquor with the addition of white wine
or lemon juice along with mirepoix in water, generally used to poach delicate fish
to help them remain firm and also impart desired flavours into the fish during the
process of cooking.

Neutral Stock : The stock that is used in the kitchen as an all purpose stock,
which in generally chicken stock in India.

Rules for making good quality stock :

i) Always use g o o d q u a li ty i n g r e d i e n t s as stale bones and
vegetables can leave an unpleasant flavour and cause the stock to
detoriate quickly.

ii) Sc u m s h o u l d b e re m o v e d so that the stock is clear and free

from impurities or it will spoil the colour and flavour. Fat should be
skimmed off or it will leave a greasy taste.

iii) Stock should n e v e r b e b o il e d or it may lose flavour and

nutrients and can also become cloudy.

iv) Sa lt s h o u l d n e v e r b e a d d e d while making stock as this is a

foundation liquid and has its use later where adjustments in seasoning
may be difficult.

v) A stock s h o u l d b e c o o l e d immediately and stored in a

refrigerator for later use.

vi) For fish stock, fish bones are to be well soaked in cold water to
dissolve in blood particles.
vii) Sweating of the bones and vegetables are required in a fish stock
to enhance the flavour of the stock as they are cooked for a very little
time, just 20 minutes.

viii) For white stock, the bones need to be well washed and blanched to
remove all impurities before preparing the stock.

ix) For brown stock, the bones are browned well evenly in the oven
before making the stock.

x) If the meat in the dish is required to be poached, only then the

meat along with the bones can be used in making the stock or in case of
unavailability of bones. All meats used to make the stock should be
used in the dish to avoid financial loss to the hotel.