The most important tool is the most obviousΓÇöa stockpot. The best type is narrow, tall, and heavy-bottomed, to allow the stock to simmer gently without too much evaporation and to facilitate skimming. An 8- to 10-quart stockpot is ideal for making 2- to 4-quart batches of stock, but a smaller pot can be called into service for lesser quantities. Just be sure the pot is large enough to accommodate all of the solids (bones, shells, or vegetables) with room to cover them with 2 inches of water. Dutch ovens or wide soup pots also work, as long as you monitor the simmering stock and add more water whenever the level drops below the solids. Avoid aluminum pots, which may react with the ingredients and affect the flavor. A second large pot is handy for cooling strained stock; plastic containers work, but they insulate, and so the stock will not cool as quickly.
For making brown stocks, it is also essential to have a large roasting pan, preferably with handles. Sieves are another mustΓÇöideally two of them, one coarse and one fine. The long-handled conical kind, called a chinois or China cap, is ideal, but you can improvise a fine-mesh sieve by lining a colander with a double layer of cheesecloth, a dampened layer of paper towels, or a coffee filter. Gravy separators, also called fat separators, are a convenient way to remove excess fat from stock when there is no time to chill the stock and let the fat solidify.
