Homemade Fish Stock is used as a base for soups. Simmering fish bones with a few fresh ingredients creates a rich broth that's perfect for fish soups, chowders, and sauces. In just one hour, you'll have a deep, savory stock that adds way more flavor than just using water.
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What is Fish Stock?
Fish stock is a liquid made by simmering fish bones and heads with a few vegetables, herbs, and seasonings.
It's the secret ingredient behind many delicious soups, stews, and sauces, adding flavor that takes your seafood dishes to the next level.
Fish Stock vs. Bone Broth
Fish stock is similar to bone broth since both extract nutrients and flavor from the bones, but fish stock comes together in under an hour, while bone broth takes several.
Like bone broth, fish stock is packed with collagen, which supports healthy bones, muscles, joints, and skin. It's the foundation of so many great seafood dishes, adding depth and richness to soups, stews, and sauces.
What You Need
For the fish, use your fresh catch. I have fresh mahi here and it makes excellent stock. You can also use red snapper, grouper, or any snapper, hogfish, or tripletail.
I didn't have the head of this fish, but if you have it, use it! If you only have bones, that's fine too.
- Fish bones and heads
- Unsalted butter
- Onion, carrot, celery, garlic
- Bay leaf, parsley, thyme
- Whole black peppercorns
- White wine or lemon juice
- Salt
- Cold water
What size pot should I use? I'm using my standard stainless steel soup pot for this stock, which is an 8-quart pot. A stock pot, 10 or 12 quarts, can certainly be used. Double the recipe in the larger pot. Make sure the bones are fully submerged when you cook them.
How to Make Fish Stock For Soup
Start by removing the gills from the fish bones to prevent cloudiness and off-flavors.
- Rinse the bones under cold water and chop them to fit your pot. Soak them in water for about 10 minutes.
- Roughly chop onions, carrots, and celery, and garlic.
- In a large stockpot, heat butter or oil over medium heat and sauté the vegetables for about five minutes until softened but not browned.
- Add the fish bones to the pot and cook for another five minutes.
- Pour in white wine or lemon juice letting it reduce by half, about 3 minutes.
- Add cold water to fully cover the ingredients, then toss in bay leaves, peppercorns, parsley, thyme, and a generous pinch of salt.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low to maintain slight movement without boiling.
- Skim any foam that rises to the surface. Let the stock simmer for 30 minutes.
- Strain it through a fine mesh strainer and discard the solids.
- Allow the stock to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate overnight. Skim off the hardened fat layer with a spoon and discard it.
Top Tips For Great Fish Broth
- Use your fresh catch, such as red snapper, mutton snapper, yellowtail, or any snapper, yellow jack, hogfish, tripletail, and grouper. Low-fat fish are better for broth.
- Rinse fish bones and heads under cold water to remove blood and impurities.
- Simmer the stock for 30 minutes. If the stock boils, it may not be clear when it cools, but it is perfectly fine to eat.
- Skim foam that rise to the surface to keep the stock clear.
- Use cold water
- Let the stock cool before refrigerating or freezing to preserve flavor and prevent bacterial growth.
- Freeze the stock in small portions using pint-size containers. This allows you to use only the amount you need without having to defrost a large batch.
Freezing Fish Stock
- Allow the stock to cool to room temperature before freezing.
- Divide the cooled stock into smaller portions in small containers.
- Label and date the containers.
- Freeze up to 3 months.
Uses for Fish Stock
- Replace water with fish stock in seafood soups.
- Deglaze pans using fish stock after searing fish.
- Use as a base for paella, seafood risotto, or sauces.
- Poach fish or shrimp in stock
Homemade Fish Stock Recipe
Using homemade fish stock in your recipes is a great way to add flavor to your seafood dishes. With just a few simple ingredients, you can create a delicious stock to use with soups, sauces, and poaching liquid.
If you are drinking the broth for the collagen, use the juice of half a lemon in the recipe instead of white wine.
Ask the local fish market for bones and heads; they might hand them to you for free.
The next time you make clam chowder, lobster bisque, or shrimp risotto, use fresh fish broth for the best flavor.
By freezing the broth you can have this delicious stock on hand whenever you need it.
FAQ
Simmer the fish stock for 20 to 45 minutes. Unlike meat stocks, fish stock doesn't require long cooking times and can be bitter if overcooked.
Allow the stock to cool completely before transferring it to airtight containers. It can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Yes! Fish stock can be used as a base for seafood soups, stews, risotto, and sauces. It adds good flavor to these dishes.
One of the biggest benefits of fish broth is the collagen. If you're working with wild-caught fish, you can drink the broth for its collagen. Collagen is great for joint health and muscle growth making fish stock a healthy addition to your diet.
Yes. A grouper carcass makes excellent fish stock, especially if there is still some meat attached to the bones. Ask your fish market for clean fish bones and heads from mild white fish like grouper, snapper, hogfish, mahi mahi, or tripletail.
If the fish frame is too large for your pot, cut it into smaller pieces with kitchen shears or ask the fish market to cut it for you.
Homemade Fish Stock for Soup and Chowder
Ingredients
- 2-4 pounds fish bones and heads rinsed well
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or oil
- 1 large onion peeled and chopped
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 2 celery stalks chopped
- 2 garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- A few sprigs of fresh parsley or thyme
- 1 cup white wine
- kosher salt
- 8 cups cold water
Instructions
- Rinse the bones under cold water and chop them to fit your pot. Soak them in water for about 10 minutes.
- Roughly chop onions, carrots, and celery, and garlic.
- In a large stockpot, heat butter or oil over medium heat and sauté the vegetables for about five minutes until softened but not browned.
- Add the fish bones to the pot and cook for another five minutes.
- Pour in white wine letting it reduce by half, about 3 minutes.
- Add cold water to fully cover the ingredients, then toss in bay leaf, garlic, peppercorns, parsley or thyme, and a generous pinch of salt.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer uncovered over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low to maintain slight movement without boiling.
- Skim any foam that rises to the surface. Let the stock simmer for 30 minutes.
- Strain it through a fine mesh strainer and discard the solids.
- Allow the stock to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate overnight. Skim off the hardened fat layer with a spoon and discard it.
Notes
- Allow the stock to cool to room temperature before freezing.
- Divide the cooled stock into smaller portions in small containers.
- Label and date the containers.
- Freeze up to 3 months.
Dara says
This is the best stock for making soup and risotto!
Mason from Georgia says
I used this recipe with flounder bones. It came out great. thanks.