Chinese Chicken Stock

Although my mother worked at a full-time job, she always had time to make the all-important chicken stock. It was the foundation for all her soups and sauces. The chief ingredient is inexpensive; the stock is light and delicious, and it marries well with other foods, enhancing and sustaining them. The usual Chinese chicken stock is precisely that: the essence of chicken, with complements of ginger and spring onions often added. Combined with the condiments that give Chinese food its distinc