Eco-friendly mushroom stock

Compared to commercial products, this stock contains no additives (no preservatives, no colourants). It costs less than 1 euro to make and it keeps for  1 year: ecological, healthy and economic. This version has been enriched with the stalks of mushrooms that add even more delicious flavour. To make broth is easy: simply dissolve 1 teaspoon of stock powder per half litre of boiling water and it instantly becomes delicious, steaming broth.

 

Ingredients

– stalks & leftovers from 500g mushrooms

– celery leaves & other leftovers from a bunch of organic celery

– the outer peel of two organic onions

– the green tops of 2 organic leeks or spring onions

– coarse salt (half the weight of the vegetable leftovers)

 

Directions

Wash the veges well. With a small brush clean the earth off the mushroom stalks. Cut off the stalks and set aside.  Peel the onions and set aside the leftover peels. Roughly chop the green tops of the leeks, as well as the celery leaves and the fibrous parts of the stalk that you normally throw away. Use the vegetables that remain as you wish. You can also freeze the required leftovers in the freezer as, and when, you cook the veges. Weigh all the leftover veges in order to calculate how much salt is needed. Put everything in a large pot with the salt and leave to cook until the water produced by the veges has completely evaporated – at least 25 mins.  Don’t cover the pot as this will limit evaporation.  When all the water is gone, leave the mixture to desiccate. You can choose the method: oven, desiccator appliance, radiator etc. If you use the oven, pre-heat to 75 degrees C°.  Depending on the method selected you’ll need anything from 4 hours to a couple of days (for example if you use the sun or the heat of a radiator). Don’t rush the process – remember that for the time and energy consumed, the stock lasts for up to a year and produces a litre of tasty broth with just one teaspoon of powder. Once the vegetables are completely dessicated blend them into a fine powder. Store the stock powder in glass jars or vacuum-packed bags. An original and super-eco-friendly idea for Christmas gifts!

Lisca