Onion-free, garlic-free stock
A deep, savoury stock built from bones and herbs — no onion, garlic, leek whites or brassica scraps — so you can flavour soups, sauces and rice without the fructans.
- Lower gas
- Less irritation
- More flavour
Most stock recipes lean on onion and garlic — exactly the fructans many pouch and FODMAP-sensitive people react to. This version gets its depth from bones, carrot, bay and herbs instead, with optional umami boosters at the end. It freezes well and makes almost everything taste more finished.
⚠ Food safety
Cool stock quickly before refrigerating (an ice bath or shallow trays help). Use within about 4 days in the fridge, or freeze in portions.
Best for
- Sauces
- Soups
- Rice and risotto-style rice
- Gravy
- Mince
- Reheating meat
- Replacing some milk/cream in sauces
Replaces
- Onion/garlic-based stocks and stock cubes
- Some of the cream or milk in a sauce
What you need
- Chicken carcasses and saved bones (optional lamb or beef bones)
- Water to cover
- Salt
- Carrot
- Bay leaves
- Thyme and rosemary
- Parsley stems
- Optional: ginger slices, a few peppercorns, a parmesan rind, a splash of soy sauce or tamari at the end
How to make it
- Cover the bones with water and bring to a gentle simmer; skim off any foam.
- Add carrot, bay, thyme, rosemary, parsley stems and salt.
- Simmer low and slow (1–3 hours) — don't boil hard.
- Add a parmesan rind or a splash of soy/tamari near the end for umami if you tolerate them.
- Strain well, then cool quickly before storing.
How to store it
Cool quickly, then refrigerate and use within about 4 days, or freeze in small portions (an ice-cube tray then a bag works well for splashes).
How to use it
- Use as the liquid in rice, sauces, gravy and soups.
- Reduce it down for a more intense flavour hit.
- Swap it for some of the milk or cream in a sauce to lighten the dairy load.
- Cook once, get two building blocks: while the stock simmers low and slow, make a small jar of garlic or onion oil in the same session (see the infused-oils guide). One long cook leaves you with stock AND a flavour base for the week — just make small batches, since stock keeps about 4 days in the fridge (or freeze it) and homemade oil only about a week.
- Feeding the family from it too: use the gentle stock as the shared base for everyone's soup or gravy, then add onion, garlic or a stock cube to the rest of the pot for the others once your portion is out.
Recipe ideas
- Chicken soup with rice noodles
- Pumpkin and carrot soup
- Stock-glazed carrots
- Risotto-style rice
Good to know
- Avoid onion, garlic, leek whites, cabbage/brassica scraps and chilli in the pot.
- Go easy on celery if you react to it.
Related
Lower-risk, gentler and often better tolerated — not a guarantee. Individual tolerance varies; keep working with your own clinical team.