One of the ways that I love to save money is by making my own stock. So far, my favorites are vegetable stock and chicken stock. Veggie stock gets made from those sad sad items in the produce drawer that just didn’t get eaten. They are about to go bad and need to be used up so they don’t end up in the compost. Chicken stock gets made from the bones, giblets, and skin from a whole chicken (which is how I usually buy them).

Today, let’s talk about the veggie version.

It’s easy.

It will save you money.

It will feel like you’re wasting less produce, because you are.

Oh and bonus, you control what goes in it. I don’t salt my stocks. I leave them pure and simple, and add salt when I’m making the soup.

Whatever your reason for wanting to do it, here’s what I’ve learned to do.

I find some veggies, a few herbs, some water, and a large pot. Most any veggies will do. I’ve used broccoli and cabbage, carrots and parsnips, lettuce ends and kale stems… If you’ve got it, it can probably be stock.

Cover the veggies with water. You can always add more later if you need to, but make sure there’s a good amount. Then it’s going to cook away for an hour or so.

That’s it. You just made vegetable stock.

If you want to go a step further in the responsible consumer arena, you could use water that you’d used to boil pasta to make your stock. Or water that you’ve used to boil potatoes, or cook beans… Sure, it will be a little bit different, but why not?! And then, an extra extra step, let your dog eat the boiled veggies. Our dog, Brando, loves them (which is weird because he usually prefers his veggies doused in bacon grease).

Making our own stock is a great way that we can save money, use our resources wisely, and to be even more responsible with our food. Less waste, more taste. Let’s do this!