From zero to Hero: Zero-waste stock & curry
a legendary hack for a more sustainable kitchen
As I always say, flavour is at the forefront of any good food. No matter how pretty, intricate or mouth-watering something looks, it’s taste that brings the triumph. Especially when we’re in the less flashy realms of the home kitchen (that being said, it’s amazing how even some meagre presentation effort can improve the appeal of a home cooked meal!).
Something I learned in my early days of kitchen experimenting, is that to really bring the punch to your home cooking, it’s all about building layers of flavour. At each stage of the cooking process, flavour can be amplified: from the Maillard reaction as onions are softened and caramelised to start your favourite soup, stew or curry; to the finishing touches from a squeeze of lemon juice or a flurry of fresh herbs for that final flavour crescendo. And one of the easiest ways to add body and flavour to a recipe is with good old vegetable stock.
So this week, I’m here to introduce some ways to revolutionise your vege stock game. Firstly, I want to be real with you. As much as I’ve intended to for many years, it’s only recently that I’ve finally made this small but significant leap in making my own stock. I started out cooking with stock cubes - which is the cheapest and most convenient option for building that flavour. You can get them straight from the supermarket shelf, they last forever, are affordable, and take up little-to-no space in your pantry. But the additives and ultraprocessing that goes into these salty cubes, plus the comparably worse flavour (once you’ve used real or homemade stock you know the difference), meant that I soon moved onto cooking with ‘Ready Made Real Stock’.
‘Ready Made Real Stock’ is the vegetable stock that comes in the classic 1 litre tetrapak. It’s a much purer product than the classic stock cube, with better flavour, but often contains added sugar and glucose, and of course has also gone through considerable manufacturing processes, all which results in waste, emission production, and a larger environmental footprint for the product you’re consuming. Plus those tetrapaks are a bastard to recycle.
I’ve dabbled in homemade vegetable stock over the years, but with relative inconsistency, often still going for the manufactured ‘Real Stock’ when convenience called. But this year is about finally Eating Who I Want to Be, so in meeting these values, I’m finally committing to the homemade vegetable stock for good - and this week I’m sharing my secrets to making this affordably with (almost) zero waste.
Being a successful home cook should be more than just making delicious kai. Success should also be measured in how your cooking respects the system that you live in, and how you’re able to nourish creatively and efficiently while attempting to minimise your impact on the environment from which your nutrition comes. Eating more sustainably doesn’t always have to require a lot of effort, as you’ll see in my suggestions below. The following recipes launch from these fundamentals - there is something particularly satisfying about making a product, and then using the ‘waste’ from that product to create more and more deliciousness. The Stock Veg Curry I’m sharing with paid subscribers this week is just that - you’ll have stock for the next few weeks/months, and a full puku at the end.
Cooking from Good Vibes: Alongside vege stock concoctions, in making the most of the zucchini season, this week I’m cooking my Zucchini fritters with avocado feta whip & herb salad - fresh, light, flavour-packed! And while the tomatoes are blushing, the Cucumbers & tomatoes with pomegranate, tahini & za’atar is quick, delicious gold at this time of year.
Much love,
Alby xx
Homemade Vegetable Stock - 3 Ways
Today I’m sharing with you three simple ways of making vegetable stock at home. My go-to full flavour stovetop version; a low energy method with boiling water and no other active cooking (that produces a much lighter stock); and a vegetable scrap stock (using veg scraps from other cooking, that you’ve conveniently frozen for future stock making). The biggest thing when making vegetable stock, is that not all vegetables are stock friendly if you’re looking for that classic veg stock flavour. Avoid cruciferous vegetables (brassicas like cauliflower, cabbage etc. included) as they can make your stock bitter. Also avoid using potatoes, as the stock will be quite starchy and cloudy. Things like beetroot, capsicum and such can overwhelm the colour and flavour of the stock too. I suggest sticking with veggies like celery, carrot, onion, leek and mushrooms. Ginger, garlic, herbs and spices also make great additions. But as always, make your stock your own! If you want your stock to take on a more signature character, you can add things like miso, soy sauce etc. - but these flavours will carry through strongly, and will mean your stock is perhaps a little less versatile than my classic version.
Hands-on Time: 5-10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
makes about 2-2.5 litres of stock, easily doubled
Cost Estimate: $4.50 ($1.80/litre)
Ingredients
1kg vegetables
about 330g carrots (2-3 carrots), each chopped into 2-3 large pieces*
about 330g brown onions (2 large onions), peeled, ends trimmed and quartered*
about 330g celery stalks (4 stalks), chopped into large pieces*
6 cloves garlic, peeled*
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 large handful fresh herbs (e.g. thyme, parsley)
1 tsp coriander seeds
3 litres boiling water
*place any vegetable or garlic peelings/trimmings in a bag/container and freeze. Gradually add to this with other appropriate (see intro) vegetable scraps until you have enough to make a vegetable scrap stock (see method below).
Method
Full Flavour Vegetable Stock Method
Place all the ingredients in a large saucepan, pour over the boiling water, and stir to combine. Bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-low, cover with a lid, and gently simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and strain through a cheesecloth/muslin or a fine mesh sieve into a large pouring bowl or similar, squeezing to extract all the flavour and liquid from the vegetables and spices. Pour the stock into jars or containers, seal and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 6 months. Remove any herb twigs/woody bits (e.g. if you used whole thyme sprigs), transfer the cooked vegetables/herbs/spices to a bowl and blitz with a stick blender until smooth. You can now use this stock veg purée to make my 10 minute Stock Veg Curry - see recipe below. Make the curry immediately, or refrigerate the stock veg purée for up to 3 days until needed.
Low Energy Vegetable Stock Method
Place all the ingredients in a large saucepan and stir to combine. Leave to cool a little, cover with a lid and refrigerate overnight for up to 24 hours. Strain through a cheesecloth/muslin or a fine mesh sieve into a large pouring bowl or similar, squeezing to extract all the flavour and liquid from the vegetables and spices. Pour the stock into jars or containers, seal and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 6 months. The stock will be a lot clearer and have a more subtle flavour than the stovetop vegetable stock method above, but is a great option if you’re looking for a lighter stock or trying to reduce energy consumption. You can then cook the leftover vegetables/herbs/spices (they may not be soft enough to purée, like they were using the full flavour method above) and use these as the base of a soup, stew or curry.
Vegetable Scrap Stock Method
If there’s one thing you should start today, it’s having an ice cream container or bag in your freezer, dedicated to vegetable scraps for making a Vegetable Scrap Stock. As mentioned in the note above, avoid any scraps from cruciferous vegetables (e.g. cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts etc.), beetroot, potatoes, citrus and such. Onions, carrots, celery, leeks, spring onions, garlic and ginger peels etc. are all good options.
Once you’ve collected about 1kg of vegetable scraps (this will likely take a few weeks), then use those vegetable scraps in place of the whole vegetables in the recipes above, following the same method. Once the stock has been strained and stored, rather than blitzing the leftover vegetables, add the leftover vegetable scraps to your compost.
Alby’s Advice:
Homemade stock is a great way to use up sad looking vegetables that you might have forgotten about in the bottom of your fridge or that neglected corner at the back of your pantry. They’ll still hold plenty of flavour.
If you’re feeling super keen you can actually first make the Low Energy Vegetable Stock, strain the stock, then return the vegetables/herbs/spices to the saucepan, add another 3 litres of boiling water and then make the Full Flavour Vegetable Stock.
Stock Veg 10-Minute Curry
This curry is an excellent way to use up those leftover stock vegetables/herbs/spices - quick, packed full of vegetable deliciousness, and most importantly meaning there is zero waste from the stock-making process. It’s the instant reward that ensures making your own stock is always worth it.
Hands-on Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes (excluding time to initially first make vegetable stock, which can be done days in advance)
serves 3-4
Cost Estimate: $9.50 ($2.50 per serve)
Ingredients
2 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp ground chilli, or to desired heat
2 tbsp canola or coconut oil
leftover Stock Veg Purée from making my Full Flavour Vegetable Stock (see recipe above)
400ml can coconut milk
400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tsp sea salt
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 small bunch mint, leaves picked and finely chopped
rice, roti or paratha, to serve
Method
First make the curry spice mix. In a frying pan over medium-high heat, toast the coriander, cumin, black mustard and fennel seeds for a minute or two until fragrant and starting to pop. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and grind to as fine a powder as you can be bothered making. Alternatively you can use ground versions of these spices if that’s what you have on hand. Transfer to a small bowl and add the turmeric, cardamom, ginger, black pepper and chilli, whisking to combine.
For the curry, heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or high-sided frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the blitzed Stock Veg Purée and curry spice mix, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to brown and caramelise a little. Pour in the coconut milk, along with the chickpeas, salt, apple cider vinegar and mint leaves. Stir together and simmer for a further couple of minutes until warmed through and delicious. Adjust seasoning and heat to taste with chilli, salt or extra vinegar as desired.
Serve warm in bowls with your favourite flatbreads or rice.
Alby’s Advice:
The flavour of the curry may differ depending which vegetables you have used to make your homemade vegetable stock - I’ve only tested it using leftover Stock Veg Purée that was made using my 1/3 carrots, 1/3 onion, 1/3 celery method above - which I guarantee is a winner.
Feel free to use your own curry spice mix made with whatever you have on hand.