I made some vegetable stock a few months ago, before enrolling in rouxbe. i basically covered a whole bunch of vegetables - skins and all - with cold water and boiled forever.

the result tastes good, but i was left with about 7 quarts of stock - way too much. so i froze it.

after talking the lesson on Short Stock, i think i can infuse this stock in batches if i want to make different short stocks, so that should come in handy.

however, i'm also wondering if i can reduce and enrich this stock further, and also, what could i use the reduced vegetable stock for?

today i'm roasting some new mirepoix and then i will add the vegetable stock and reduce by half. at least i'll make some room in the freezer. any thoughts on when i could use this reduced vegetable stock? is this even a good idea?

thanks

The purpose of reducing vegetable stock would simply be to concentrate its flavor and color. Unlike meat stocks, reducing them will not only concentrate their flavor and color but will also make them thicker because they contain gelatin. This will never happen with vegetable stocks because they do not contain gelatin. It all depends on the flavor you are after. If you want a stronger flavor, reduce the stock. If you want a lighter flavor, don't reduce it.

In terms of what you can use stock for, the options are endless. You can use vegetable stock to cook rice/grains/beans, soups, braised dishes, some sauces, etc. Really anywhere that you would use water but want to increase the flavor. Cheers!