Quick chicken stock

Makes a couple of litres

A pressure cooker is perfect for making great quick stocks and by simply blanching the bones first you don't need to go to all the trouble of laboriously clarifying the stock with egg whites and minced chicken.

2 chicken thighs, skinned if making the soup below
A couple of raw chicken carcasses, chopped into 4 or 5 pieces
1 small onion, peeled and quartered
2-3 sticks of celery, roughly chopped and washed
1 small leek, roughly chopped and washed
10 black peppercorns
A few sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf
1tsp salt
1 chicken stock cube

Put the chicken thighs and bones in the pressure cooking pan without the lid, cover with cold water, bring to the boil then drain and rinse with cold water.

Return to the pressure cooker pan with the rest of the ingredients and add 2.5 litres of water. Bring to a simmer, close and secure the pressure cooker lid and cook on a low temperature for 30 minutes.

Remove from the pressure cooker and strain through a fine-meshed sieve, reserving the thighs if using and making the consommé below. The stock should have a nice strong flavour; if not, just simmer for a further 10-15 minutes until it strengthens and re-season if necessary.