Demi-Glace

Directions

• Spread the bones evenly over a large roasting tray
• In a large bowl add the mirepoix (Carrot, Onion and Celery) and tomato paste, mix thoroughly so as the vegetables are covered in tomato paste. Spread the mirepoix evenly over a large roasting tray.,
• Place in a preheated oven at 450°F until they are very well browned.
• The vegetables will take less time, but they are ready when the tips of the onion are turning black.
• The bones will probably take around 1¼ hours to be completely roasted.
• When the vegetables are roasted they can be placed in the stockpot.
• Add the water to the stockpot
• Once the bones are nicely browned, add them to the stockpot of cold water
• Turn on the heat under the stockpot and bring to the boil
• Meanwhile, deglaze the roasting tin of the bones by adding a little water over a medium heat and scraping all the residue of the bottom of the pan, add this to the stockpot.
• Once the stock has come to the boil, turn the heat down so that the surface is barely breaking into a simmer.
• Top with a lid and leave to simmer very gently for at least 18 hours, yes 18 not a typo.
• After 18 hours of simmering, with a long-handled spider or perforated long-handled spoon lift the bones to see that they are totally clean, if so gently scoop out all the bones and vegetables into a sieve over a bowl to catch any liquid. Don’t worry about leaving small bits behind, the stock will be strained before use
• replace any liquid caught from the bones etc back into the stockpot and bring it back to a boil
• Now let the stock reduce by up to half, leaving you with around 8 pints or 1 gallon.
• As the stock gets lower keep an eye on the heat, reduce the heat to a simmer so as not to burn the stock
• You are going to need a receptacle large enough to hold the stock but also small enough to fit into the refrigerator, so if you need two so be it.
• Once you get to the required reduction, begin to strain the stock through a fine sieve into your clean receptacle/s.
• Use the back of a ladle to force through any liquid from the caught residue
• You need to cool the stock down as quickly as possible from now on before you place it in the fridge,
• Place the container into a cold water bath, maybe packed with ice to help it on the way.
• Once you have it down to room temperature place the lid on and put in the fridge to cool completely overnight.
• Once cooled and set, you can scrape any settled fat on the top carefully with a spoon, then turn the demi-glace out onto a clean surface, you will notice how solid and jellified it is.
• with a sharp knife cut into usable portions, wrap in clingfilm and place in the freezer for future use
• These individual portions will be great for deglazing a pan that you have cooked a steak in,
• Just add a portion of demi-glace to the pan and let it reduce down taking in the sediment of the pan, season as required and there you have a beautiful sauce to accompany your meat dish.
• Just a last-minute tip. There is no seasoning in your demi-glace, so taste the sauce you make from it and season as required.