The best broth you can buy is this savory essence from Savory Choice.

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January 2006

Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / Soups & Stocks

Savory Choice Broth Concentrates

Restaurant-Quality Stocks For Consumers

“Indeed, stock is everything in cooking…” said the great chef Escoffier, whose classic, basic white stock begins with eight pounds of veal shins and one or two fowl’s skeletons. Great stock is what puts the “fine” in fine dining, lending dimension and rounding out flavor by concentrating the taste profiles of its ingredients and reducing them down to a heady essence.

That’s why we like the people at Savory Choice. They’ve kicked the shins out of your labors in the kitchen, providing chicken, beef, and turkey broth concentrates so delicious, it’s the next best thing to having Escoffier making stock in your kitchen.

And, they’ve put their broth concentrates in handy foil packages you can convert to broth in an instant. From beef gravy to risotto, incredibly flavorful, restaurant-quality results are in store when Savory Choice concentrates are part of your pantry. These are the concentrates that good chefs use. The mahogany-colored paste for the chicken broth bears the distinct aroma of roast chicken and caramelized carrots, while the concentrate for beef stock has big, meaty flavor without the usual heavy dose of salt. The broths taste intensely like roasted chicken, turkey, or beef—in most broths, the foremost flavors are usually celery and other vegetables...and salt. There is no MSG, and no other additives. An introduction to Savory Choice will relegate any other commercial broth of your acquaintance to the “former acquaintance” list.

To make a cup of broth, simply tear open a foil pouch and dilute the paste with a cup of water. Or, add the paste straight, as you would (pardon the analogy) a bouillon cube, to give flavor dimension to stocks, stews, and soups. When you’re not cooking with Savory Choice, you can diet with it (15 calories a cup) or heal yourself with it (i.e., a palliative cup of chicken soup).

To prove our point, we gathered up an organic chicken and caramelized some onions, leeks and carrots—the usual homemade base for stock—and slowly simmered the mixture overnight. It was no better than the Savory Choice brew, and even after an assiduous degreasing, our homemade version wasn’t nearly as pristinely fat free as the packet concentrate. The ultimate proof for high-quality broth or stock is to create a sauce for simple poached or roast chicken breast. We put the packets to the test in this standout version:

Sauce for Poached or Roast Chicken Breast 1 package Savory Choice Chicken Broth Concentrate 1-½ cups water 1/8 teaspoon saffron 1 tablespoon chopped, preserved lemon rind or 4 lemon verbena leaves 1 egg yolk 1 tablespoon olive oil In a small saucepan, dissolve the concentrate paste in the water; add saffron and lemon rind or verbena leaves and bring to a simmer. Turn off heat, cover and let broth steep for about 10 minutes. Strain, then reheat. In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolk with the oil and begin adding the hot liquid, a little at a time, whisking constantly to prevent egg yolk from curdling. Continue blending until sauce is the consistency of mayonnaise; add salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Poach or roast some chicken breasts and make an easy, delicious sauce with Savory Choice concentrate. Photo courtesy of Bell & Evans.

Many recipes on the company’s website show uses from marinades, spreads, and herb butters; sauces and gravies, appetizers, soups, and sides; and main courses from Maple Brined Pork Chops with Ancho Sauce to Savory Thai Curry Chicken.

The package invites you to “savor the homemade flavor,” and we promise that you will.  Keep the box hidden, and tuck the empty foil pouch at the bottom of the trash, and you can convince your family that you’ve been making stock all day.

Prices and flavor availability are verified at publication but are subject to change.