Making a good stock is one of the most important basic skills in Thai cuisine, especially if you want great tasting Thai soups. While chicken stock is the "basic stock" in Western cooking, in Thailand, it's pork stock that's our default. Pork stock has a slightly more robust flavour than chicken, and of course it tastes slightly different, but it's still neutral enough to be used as a general-purpose stock for any dish.

For those who don't eat pork, I also have a Thai-style chicken stock recipe here, and this is what Thai-muslims use in their cooking.

Ingredients

Here are all the ingredients you'll need to make this recipe. For amounts, check out the full recipe card below.

Pork bones, pork neck bones or back bones are what I typically use for this, you can find it at most Asian butcher's. Neck bones will be more meaty (and more expensive) but you'll be able to pick off tender meats off the bones at the end and use it in whatever dishes you like. I often throw it into a red curry paste stir fry.
Water
Top half of one lemongrass, crushed and chopped into 2" pieces (optional
Garlic, crushed until broken
Cilantro roots, crushed, or substitute cilantro stems.
Daikon or onion, peeled and large diced. Either daikon or onion will make the soup naturally sweet.
White peppercorns, crushed

(I included the soup in the show literally as a last minute decision, so I didn't get a chance to get you exact measurements, but it's super easy, and if you taste your soup and adjust seasoning while cooking, you really can't go wrong!)

How to Make Pork Stock

Here are all the steps to make this recipe. If this is your first time, I highly recommend watching the video tutorial to ensure success! In the video I also share a quick soup recipe that you can make using your freshly made pork stock 🙂

Wash the bones in cold water and add to a large stock pot.
Cover the bones with cold water and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to medium to medium low and maintain a simmer for 1 hour, then skim off all the scum that has floated to the top.
Add the daikon/onion, cilantro stems, garlic, lemongrass tops, and white pepper, then simmer for 1 more hour. You can top the stock with some water at the end if you want more volume, keeping in mind that the more water you add the more diluted the stock will be.
Strain the stock, and if you noticed a lot of meat on the bones, you can pick it off and throw it into a stir fry, curry, or any dish you like!
You can use the stock immediately or freeze.

How to Make Pork Stock in the Instant Pot

If you own a pressure cooker such as an Instant Pot, you can speed up and simplify the process! It's as simple as throwing everything into the pot and cook on high pressure for 30 minutes. I do use less water since there will be no evaporation.

However, I don't love making the stock in a pressure cooker. I find that the pressure extracts a certain smell from the bones that I don't like (if this smell doesn't bother you, then great!) Now, this smell isn't terrible by any means, and often, after I've used the stock in a dish it's even less obvious, but I still prefer the clean flavour of the gentler cooking on the stove.

So, while you might be tempted to pressure-cook the stock for longer to extract even more nutrients or whatever else, I find that longer than 30 minutes and that funky smell starts to get a little too intense.

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Thai Style Pork Stock

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 4 reviews

Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs
Total Time: 0 hours
Yield: Makes 6-8 cups

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Description

In Thai cuisine, pork stock is the most commonly used stock, and it is key in so many recipes, especially noodle soups. Make in bulk and freeze in zip top bags for ease of use! Also check out my Thai style chicken stock recipe.

Ingredients

2 lb (900 g) pork bones, I use neck bones or back bones which are available at Asian butchers
3.5 L water
Top half of one lemongrass, crushed and chopped into 2" pieces
4-5 cloves garlic, crushed until broken
2 cilantro roots, crushed, or 5 cilantro stems
4-inch section of a daikon or half an onion, peeled and large diced
½ tsp white peppercorns, crushed

Ingredients & Kitchen Tools I Use

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Instructions

Wash the bones in cold water and add to a large stock pot. Cover the bones with the water and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to medium or medium low to maintain a gentle simmer, and simmer for 1 hour.
Skim off all the scum that has floated to the top then add all of the aromatics and simmer for another hour.
If you want more volume you can top it up with some water, but keep in mind that the more water you add, the more diluted the stock will be.
Strain the stock, and if you see a lot of meat on the bones, pick it off and throw it into curries, stir fries, or anything else you'd like. Don't waste it!
The stock will last up to a week in the fridge, but I always freeze my stock in portions for ease of use.

Instant Pot Instruction:

Reduce the water to 3 L, and place all ingredients into the instant pot. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes, then you can release the steam right away or let it naturally release.
Strain the stock, and store in the fridge for up to one week, or freeze in portions for ease of use.

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