Stock from a ham bone: how to make it and how to keep it

Around half of a ham's weight ends up as slices. The rest is bone, rind and outer fat, and in a home where people cook, none of it goes to waste either: the bone, cut into pieces, is the base for stocks and cocidos all winter long.

What you need

• Two or three pieces of ham bone, trimmed of rind and of the yellowish outer fat.
• One leek, one carrot, one onion and, if you like, a stick of celery.
• About three litres of cold water.
• Salt, only at the end and only if needed: the bone already provides its own.

Step by step

1. 1

   Step 1: Cut up the bone

   Whole, it will not fit in the pot. It is cut with a saw, or you can ask for it ready cut: if we slice your piece for you in our shop, we give you the bones cut and vacuum-packed.

2. 2

   Step 2: Blanch it

   Cover the pieces with water, bring them to the boil for a couple of minutes and throw that water away. This way the stock comes out clearer and less salty.

3. 3

   Step 3: Into the pot, with cold water

   Put the blanched bone and the cleaned vegetables in the pot, cover with cold water and turn up the heat until it starts to boil.

4. 4

   Step 4: Low heat and no rush

   Turn the heat down to the minimum and let it simmer for two to three hours, without letting it boil rapidly. Skim off the foam that rises at the beginning.

5. 5

   Step 5: Strain and skim off the fat

   Strain the stock, cool it quickly and put it in the fridge within two hours. There the fat rises and sets on the surface: remove it with a spoon.

6. 6

   Step 6: Taste and, if needed, add salt

   Only now. With a good bone, you often don't need to add any salt.

How to store it

In the fridge it keeps for two or three days, well covered. To always have it to hand, freeze it in portions: in jars, leaving a finger's width of space at the top, or in ice cube trays so you can take out just what you need for a sofrito or a rice dish.

What to use it for

On its own, with some noodles or a chopped egg, it is already a soup. And as a base it improves pulses, a cocido, stewed potatoes or a soupy rice. The trimmings and the chunks near the bone, chopped, finish off the dish.