How To Make Your Own Vegetable Stock

Vegetable stock is just another way to make the most of your vegetables and is a great way of tackling food waste in your kitchen. Cooking with veg often produces a lot of offcuts and waste, be it from stems, leaves or peel. This can all be collected and frozen, and when you have enough, they can then be boiled to create a flavourful vegetable stock, meaning you use your vegetables as efficiently as possible. 

Recipe creator Val uses a homemade vegetable stock using a base of onion, celery, garlic and ginger. These all create offcuts and waste when cooking, as you cut the ends of the veg or de-skin them. It’s also a great way to repurpose vegetables. Celery is a vegetable that can end up knocking about in your fridge as you may not know what you can use it for, so you can give it new life by adding it to your stock. The addition of white miso adds a real depth and umami flavour that is guaranteed to elevate any dish you need requiring a good vegetable stock. 

So, to make your stock, you will need:

1 large onion, quartered

1 stick celery, chopped

4 cloves garlic, smashes

1-inch ginger, cut into strips, 

1 tsp peppercorns

1.2L water

2 tbsp white miso

Add the onion, celery, garlic, ginger, peppercorns, salt and water to a medium-sized pot. After simmering the stock for 50 minutes, stir in the white miso. Continue simmering for 5 more minutes. Strain the stock through a fine-mesh sieve and into a large bowl. Set aside, and just like that, it’s done!

The best recipes for your new vegetable stock

Vegan saffron risotto

Rich and creamy, a good stock makes all the difference, particularly considering that there aren’t many ingredients that make up this heavenly dish. This risotto is great when you want something a little bit decadent, and is also a hit at any dinner party. 

Thai peanut ramen soup

A good stock massively changes this Thai peanut ramen soup, as the base of the soup feels fresher and earthier. This one is great for grey winter days when you need a bright pick me up; flavourful and with a kick, it’s a great recipe to have in your arsenal.

Any-bean spring stew

This any-bean spring stew is perfect for the days you want something nourishing but your next grocery shop is due. It’s flexible and delicious, and your homemade stock in the mix will only make it even better.

Vegan paella

Serve this paella family-style for the best results; there’s nothing like the appreciation you get from your friends and family when you present a big pan of this colourful goodness. Good quality stock is the bread and butter of any good paella, as the rice absorbs it all for real depth of flavour. So give it a try, and you can thank us later!