Vegetable Scrap Soups

[connie189]

Hi

I've seen recipes for making "leftover" (vegetable) soups.

Q.: If you use the skins from onions, and other cast-off parts of veggies (peels) for the soups, would this be safe? I thought it was wise to peel veggies because I read that "most of the (unsafe) chemicals" are in the peels (or outer layers).

If I use the same outer layers for soup, that would offset any benefits by what I did by peeling the original vegetable(s)??

I read that even "organic" veggies have had some chemicals applied (but not as many or the same).

Thanks for any insights.

[LindainAK]

When I peel or otherwise process a batch of vegetables I always think about saving the discards in the freezer - but I've never done it, for the same reason as you. And I read somewhere that onion skins would leave the broth bitter.... so I'm hoping someone with experience responds to this.

[Leanne]

I make stock from veggie peels in my crock pot. Very simple. All the shavings, ends, and bits of veggies that I might not use for a nice presentation but are still good go into a freezer bag, and when it's full, I make stock by dumping it all into a crockpot and pouring water over it. Cook on low overnight, strain and freeze for use as needed. (I don't have a pressure canner, but I'm sure you could can it if you had the experience and the tools.)

Things to note:

* I always wash my veggies, and I mostly buy organic or grow my own, so I don't worry about pesticides much. As for other residue, like I said, I wash them, and then the stock gets boiled, and that's fine as far as I'm concerned. I've never gotten sick doing this.

* Most of the nutrition in your veggies is right under the peel, so you might be getting rid of residue by peeling, but you're also getting rid of nutrition. Six of one, half a dozen of the other?

* Yes, too many brown onion skins make it bitter. I use the tops and bottoms of the onions that I slice off, and if there's a layer or two that's not fully grown, I use that too, and then the really papery layers go into the compost.

* Avoid using brassica bits, they make really strong-tasting stock. Carrots, celery, onions, mushrooms, parsnips, all of that is good. Ginger peels are great if you're doing an Asian-style broth. I also use asparagus bottoms, the parts that are woody, though some people find that too strong. (I think it's fine.) Tomato cores are probably fine but I never remember to freeze them. There isn't much flavor in garlic peels, but I'll throw them in anyway, plus a few whole cloves of garlic.

Other things you can add: herbs — thyme stems, parsley, that sort of thing. Go sparingly on rosemary, it's strong stuff. So's sage. Whole peppercorns, about thirty. I never really count, just throw them in. Four or five whole cloves. I wouldn't add salt, because this is a good base recipe, and you can use it in so many dishes — just salt your final dish as needed.

If you save your chicken bones from chickens you roast (and you should, if you eat such things!), you can freeze those too, and throw them into your stock. Same deal with the giblets, if you don't normally eat them. Freeze them and add them. Mmmm, chicken stock. Pretty much any bones or meat bits will work. Ham bones, beef bones, turkey carcasses, whatever — I'd maybe avoid lamb, might be too strong.

Oh! And be aware that your whole house will smell AMAZING and you'll be STARVING when you wake up from letting that simmer overnight! Has happened to me too many times to count.

[Leanne]

Oh yeah, forgot. Corn cobs work well in this too, if you've made a dish where you've sliced the corn off the cob. Mmm, corn stock, deeelish.

[LindainAK]

thanks Leanne - I'm going to try it!

[connie189]

Leanne,

Thanks for the great write-up!

I was saving the paper part of the onion.

I do wash all fruit/veggies. Yeah, something's gonna get me (hopefully not my own cooking, LOL).

The corncobs...thought about trying to make jelly, but when I get positioned to do so, something catches my attention .... Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel that like to lay stretched on my back porch railing and act like they're starving (all the while looking into my kitchen through our large window) when I'm cooking.

So guess where the cobs go?

They love apple cast-off apple cuttings, too.

[connie189]

Leanne,

Would I put in the giblets with the veggie cuttings, or separately? (Would the giblets be too strong?) I have a 2 (one) qt. bags of those.

Also a large bag of chicken livers.

[Leanne]

Hi Connie! Aw, your squirrels sound like adorable beggars. We don't have them here (they seem to prefer living in the avocado grove and don't bug us), but we have rabbits who are so tame that you can practically pick them up.

You can put the giblets in with the veggies. If you do mixed giblets, I think it'll be fine — a little different than a stock done with a carcass, but still delicious. If a few giblets are all I have, I just cook them up in a tiny pot on the stove, so a whole bag will probably do just fine in a crock.

I don't think I'd do a huge pile of chicken livers unless you really want chicken liver stock for some reason. I would make paté with those instead! One of my favorite restaurants does a fantastic chicken liver Marsala, but I don't have the recipe, sadly. Though I think it would be pretty easy to improvise.

Paté is super-easy even though it looks super-fancy. I made a turkey liver paté that I blogged about here: turkey liver paté -- but you could easily substitute three or four chicken livers for a turkey liver. This time of year you could make it and bring it to parties, or make a meal with bread and soup and maybe some pickles. Very French! Paté keeps well for about a week, so if you're not going to use a whole ton of it all at once, I'd make it in small batches.

[connie189]

Leanne,

Thanks!

I just read that the livers are good for you, but got to watch the cholesterol intake with other foods if you eat the livers. (I knew there was a catch, LOL).

Livers are supposed to be good for your vision, too. Of course, this sounds like my hubby saying wine is good for you.

I do like chocolate and it cures everything, LOL.

[Leanne]

Yeah, they are good for you!

The thing about cholesterol is kind of misleading, though not entirely false. *puts on I-took-nutrition-classes-hat, which does not make me an expert at all, this is just what I learned there* When you digest any sort of fat, your body breaks it down completely, whether it's saturated, unsaturated, cholesterol, whatever. Then your body rebuilds what it thinks it needs in its system from the building blocks of the fats you ate. Some people naturally produce more cholesterol than others, and more cholesterol production has also been linked to stress.

But the long and the short of it is, whatever fats you eat can be used by your body to produce cholesterol. This is why you should keep an eye on your total fat intake, but I wouldn't worry about cholesterol specifically. So enjoy your chicken livers and your shrimp, in moderation just like everything else.

Maybe chocolate not so much in moderation, this time of year! (I'm making fudge right now, myself!)

[crackergirl]

I never had problems using LOTS of onion skins for stock. I posted the pesticide ? long ago and was set pretty straight by other members. Another member (Oldtimer maybe?) pointed out that any pesticide on the onion skins are going to pass right through to the onions, and we don't hesitate to use them. Also, the USDA (consider the source) identifies the most likely to have residue is fruit, especially strawberries.
Here's a recipe I like;
bare rendering bones
carrots unpeeled and chopped
yellow onions peeled and chopped
celery chopped
roast bones for 2 hours @ 400. Watch them, you want brown, not black!
Scrape the whole lot, bones, crispy and everything from the pan into a stock pot.
Add the veggies and 1 qt water for each pound of bones. Simmer
for 12 hours uncovered. Add water as needed. Do not salt. Strain and store.
Great jumping off point for all sorts of soup!

[connie189]

Leeanne,

I had a reaction to the cholesterol meds I was on (my allergist diagnosed it)...then my primary doctor did my labs and guess what? Don't need the meds. DUH! LOL. I do use olive oil...

I did have a doctor tell me 25 years ago that "all oils are bad for you" and never to eat them. I looked at him like he was growing a third eye out of his forehead. (That extreme stuff again). Every time I had a visit I watched to see if I'd catch him eating some fries, LOL.

[connie189]

crackergirl,

Thanks!

Could I ask...the chicken bones...if I crock pot a chicken, can I use those bones afterwards (to put in the oven).

I hate to assume anything.

[Grendal]

*wears fancy suit and in political ad style* im grendal and i approve this thread, not only are the tips good but they are things i do myself.however dont be squeemish with off cuts like tendons cow or pork even horse. If you cook it low and slow, makes for a great addition to any stock and stew. I love beef tendon, stomachs, hearts, livers, brains, tongues, eyes, kidneys, blood, etc. Mix the blood with eggs flour garlic and onions boil in the stock your making to make blood dumplings. Slice the boiled tongue after peeling and toss it on a sandwhich with a little olive oil and salt n peppah...when making stock dont be afraid to make a meal while your at it. I sure do.

[Leanne]

I'm not crackergirl, but sure, you can roast bones from previously-cooked stuff. I don't find you really need to if the previous use browned them already, but the crockpot isn't known for browning stuff all that well. They won't need that much time in the oven if they were already cooked once. Just keep a sharp eye on them.

Grendal, I like most critter bits and will happily consume tongue and tripe and blood and so forth, but I can't bring myself to eat brains or eyes. Eating another creature's thought process seems to be where I draw the line, at least when I'm not under duress. {:

[connie189]

Hey Leanne,

I laughed my socks off.

My hubby is sitting behind me, watching TV and I read to him what you said about brains, etc.

He has a MAJOR aversion with the brain aspect.

His parents were from a rural area; they ate brains (was like that at my house, but my sister and I didn't eat them either).

MIL served hubby and he took a bite and barfed it up. That was it for him.

My dad liked brains (his favorite food) with mushrooms.

I remember the time I made the connection (when I was a kid) what the cow tongue used to be connected to. I stopped eating tongue after that.

[connie189]

Hi Grendal,

Thanks for taking the time to share your expertise!

Do you live outside of the U.S., like maybe England? (You mentioned blood dumplings). I've heard of blood dumplings, but haven't tried making them).

My husband likes liver. I live in Chicago so have to find it in the grocery store. Used to be years ago, they sold liver in the same area in the fresh meat department. Now, it's frozen (with multiple cuts). So can't get unfrozen. Not sure why.

Are there just cuts of tendon(s), specifically?

I haven't ever seen cuts of horse where I live. (I've seen people canned cat/dog food in the past that might of had horse byproducts. I know people overseas in other countries eat horse).

Sounds like we can put just about anything in the stock pot and it all melds together.

[Grendal]

Originally Posted by connie189

Hi Grendal,

Thanks for taking the time to share your expertise!

Do you live outside of the U.S., like maybe England? (You mentioned blood dumplings). I've heard of blood dumplings, but haven't tried making them).

My husband likes liver. I live in Chicago so have to find it in the grocery store. Used to be years ago, they sold liver in the same area in the fresh meat department. Now, it's frozen (with multiple cuts). So can't get unfrozen. Not sure why.

Are there just cuts of tendon(s), specifically?

I haven't ever seen cuts of horse where I live. (I've seen people canned cat/dog food in the past that might of had horse byproducts. I know people overseas in other countries eat horse).

Sounds like we can put just about anything in the stock pot and it all melds together.

The united stated, specifically rhode island with italian roots to lazio and campania italy. Blood dumplings was a way to wadte nothing. The tendons are off cuts, butchers and slaughter houses can get them sometimes. I am blessed with a well stocked asian market place in braintree mass where i can go get tendons, the thai and vietnamese use them a lot. So in short nope no cut of just tendon as most throw them away.

Ive found a few cuts of horse here in ri, its not main stream yet but it was extremely cheap. I got 40 pounds for 35 dollars from my butcher and got it curing now. I am looking forward to my horse sausage, recipe on forum, which is also good in a stock i must say. Often when making stock ill toss in stuff to boil, sausage does make it in there occationally. There is a food thread where last year obama legalized the slaughter of horses for human consumption. As an italian, i can say horse and beef are very similar.

As for blood dumplings, best when fresh and not coagulated, blend with flour and eggs, season with onion and garlic, drop them in and let boil. My family will use hog blood for it as well as cows, sheep, goat, and the occational deer.

[connie189]

Grendal,

I have a 90 y/o aunt (by marriage) that's Italian...

Never tasted her cooking, though. (Lives too far from me).

I think I've heard of Campania (from watching Lidia Bastianich cooking Italian dishes).

I don't recall her making these dumplings, but my hubby might (he watches a lot of cooking shows).

[Grendal]

Originally Posted by connie189

Grendal,

I have a 90 y/o aunt (by marriage) that's Italian...

Never tasted her cooking, though. (Lives too far from me).

I think I've heard of Campania (from watching Lidia Bastianich cooking Italian dishes).



I don't recall her making these dumplings, but my hubby might (he watches a lot of cooking shows).

Never seen her make either