How An Ice Cube Can Help Skim Fat Off Soups Much Easier

Having hearty soups and stews in the weekly rotation can help get you through busy times or the colder months. And with one simple technique, the most frustrating part of the cooking process — removing the fat and grease from your homemade broth — becomes an absolute breeze. The best way to do this is to expose the liquid to cold. There are several effective ways to go about this, given enough time and the right equipment. 

One trick that's incredibly simple: Fill a metal ladle with ice, dip the bottom of the utensil into the liquid, and gently skim the surface of the pot without submerging the ladle. The fats and grease in your stew will collect on the underside of the spoon and come away without any hassle. Just make sure you have paper towels or rags on hand to wipe the ladle between skims.

Filling a cheesecloth with ice can achieve the same effect. Dip the ice-filled cheesecloth in your soup and the fat will come away when you remove the material. However, this can be messier than the ladle method, the latter of which allows you to clean as you go.

Make sure that you not only skim fats during the stock-making process, but also once you've incorporated your whole chicken or other meats and vegetables into your soup or stew. Since fat will melt into the boiling liquid, skimming the fat as the water simmers — but before it gets to a boil — will ensure the best results.

While using the ice trick is a quick and effective way to skim your broth as you cook, it's far from the only option to achieve a clean broth. The simplest and least messy method is one that requires no tools or techniques, only time. Let the soup or stew chill in the refrigerator overnight. As the broth cools, the fat will rise to the top, making it easy to scoop it off the next day with a spoon. This is especially true for meat-heavy soups.

If you make a lot of soup, or if you're a perfectionist when it comes to cooking gravy, investing in a fat separator can help expedite this process considerably. These easily-accessible products use the simple physics of separating solids and liquids to help ensure clean, clear broths every time.

If you're in a pinch and nothing else will do, you can use paper towels to de-grease your broth. Dab the paper towel on the surface of the liquid and repeat until you're happy with the results. This process is messy and somewhat wasteful, and risks you accidentally mopping up your precious soup, so it's not the most efficient, but it can be effective in some situations.

Once you've cleaned your broth, you may be inclined to throw away that fat but not so fast! Hold onto that grease, store it in an airtight container, and use it to cook with; it will impart a rich, delicious flavor on toast, potatoes, eggs, and more.