Roasted Ham Bone Stock

The stock is best made a day ahead of time and chilled so you can easily skim off the fat before using. It can also be used as the base of a sauce or gravy for pork dishes or to cook risotto.

1 roasted ham bone
1 large onion, peeled and cut into quarters
1 large leek, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 large carrot trimmed and chopped
1 large rib celery, trimmed and chopped
6 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Salt
Water

Place the bone in a large soup pot. Add the onion, leek, carrot, celery, peppercorns, bay leaf, and salt (go easy on the salt-most smoked hams are very salty). Cover with cold water and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to moderately low and simmer, partially covered, until the stock is flavorful, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If the stock still tastes weak, raise the heat to moderately high and let it simmer vigorously until the flavor intensifies. Season to taste.

Strain the stock and let cool. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.

Skim off any fat floating on the top of the stock and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for several months until you are  ready to use the stock.

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