October 18, 2026
How Much Stock Does a Stock Pot Make? Bones, Water and Yield for 5.2, 8, 11, 12 and 20 qt
A stock pot filled to a sensible simmering level gives up roughly a third of its volume between evaporation and straining. That works out to about 3.5 L of finished stock from Ciwete's 8 qt pot, 4.9 L from the 11 qt and 8.8 L from the 20 qt. Here is the bones-to-water math behind each size, and which one matches the batch you actually cook.
The short answer
Plan on filling a stock pot to two-thirds, then losing roughly a third of that volume to a gentle three-to-four hour simmer and to the liquid that stays trapped in the strained solids. On that basis Ciwete's five stainless stock pots produce:
| Pot | Capacity | Water at 2/3 fill | Finished stock | Bones (1:2 by weight) | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.2 qt | 4.92 L | 3.3 L | about 2.3 L (2.4 qt) | 1.6 kg | $35.99 |
| 8 qt | 7.57 L | 5.0 L | about 3.5 L (3.7 qt) | 2.5 kg | $64.99 |
| 11 qt | 10.41 L | 6.9 L | about 4.9 L (5.1 qt) | 3.5 kg | $59.99 |
| 12 qt | 11.36 L | 7.6 L | about 5.3 L (5.6 qt) | 3.8 kg | $84.99 |
| 20 qt | 18.93 L | 12.6 L | about 8.8 L (9.3 qt) | 6.3 kg | $119.99 |
Two numbers in that table matter most: the two-thirds fill, and the 1:2 bone-to-water ratio.
Why two-thirds, not to the brim
A stock pot is not a kettle. It is a wide, open vessel whose surface is doing two jobs at once - releasing steam and letting you skim - and both of them get harder as the pot fills.
- Foam. The first twenty minutes of a chicken or pork stock throw a grey protein foam that expands upward before it collapses. In a pot filled to the rim there is nowhere for it to go but the hob.
- Agitation. Stock should never roll - a hard boil emulsifies fat into the liquid and turns it cloudy - and the fill line is the physical backstop when the heat creeps up.
- Skimming room. A ladle or skimmer needs an approach angle. Two-thirds full leaves you a clear 8-10 cm of wall to work against.
The trade-off is real: you are giving up a third of the pot's nominal capacity to headroom. That is why a 12 qt pot does not produce 12 quarts of stock, and why shoppers who expect one-to-one are disappointed by every brand, not just this one.
The 1:2 ratio, and why bones are weighed against water
Restaurant stock is built on a weight ratio, not a handful count: roughly one kilogram of bones to two litres of cold water. Push the ratio toward 1:1 and you get a denser, gellier stock that costs more and can taste flat; push it toward 1:3 and you get a thin broth that is fine for a soup base and weak as a sauce.
Working back from the water column above, the bones each pot can responsibly carry are about 1.6 kg for the 5.2 qt, 2.5 kg for the 8 qt, 3.5 kg for the 11 qt, 3.8 kg for the 12 qt and 6.3 kg for the 20 qt. A raw chicken frame with the meat stripped weighs roughly 350-450 g, so those figures correspond to about 4, 6, 9, 10 and 16 frames. A crown or a whole bird carcass counts as 2-3 frames; a 12 lb turkey frame counts as 5-6.
| What you have | Bones, roughly | Pot that fits the batch |
|---|---|---|
| 4 chicken frames, or 1 roast chicken carcass plus wings | 1.5-1.8 kg | 5.2 qt |
| 6-7 frames, or 2 carcasses | 2.4-2.8 kg | 8 qt |
| One 12 lb turkey frame plus giblets | 2.8-3.5 kg | 11 qt |
| Turkey frame plus a bag of wings or feet for body | 3.6-4.2 kg | 12 qt |
| Two turkey frames, or a 20 lb bird, or a lobster boil for a crowd | 6-7 kg | 20 qt |
The 5.2 qt is the day-after-roast-chicken pot: one carcass, an onion, a carrot, a bay leaf, four hours, and a litre or two of stock you will use within the week. The 8 qt is the standard single-bird size, and the smallest Ciwete builds with a whole-body clad wall rather than a clad base.
Reduction: what three hours actually costs you
There is no single evaporation rate - it depends on the pot's diameter, the heat setting and whether the lid is on - but a household simmer on the lowest heat that still shows movement loses on the order of a quarter to a third of the starting volume over three to four hours. That is the 0.7 multiplier used above, before straining. Straining costs a second, smaller amount: a sieve full of bones and spent vegetables holds liquid in every crevice, so plan on another 5-10%, and if you want a clear stock, do not press the solids at all.
Two habits keep the arithmetic predictable. Keep the water level marked at the start - all five pots carry internal measurement markings, most of them dual-scale in quarts and litres - so you can top up with hot water if the level drops faster than expected. And add cold water only at the start, hot water later; cold water into a simmering pot stalls the cook and can cloud the stock.
Clad base or clad body - does it matter for stock?
Ciwete builds its stock pots two ways, and the difference is worth understanding before you pay for it.
| Build | Where the aluminium sits | Pots in the line | What it changes for stock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Four-layer composite base | Aluminium-iron-aluminium-magnetic stainless disc bonded to the bottom | 5.2 qt, 11 qt | Heat spreads across the base only. For a simmer, which is a bottom-heat job, nothing is lost. |
| Whole-body tri-ply | Aluminium core runs up the side walls as well as the base | 8 qt, 12 qt | Side walls heat too, so the pot holds temperature better and can go from hob to oven for browning or reducing. |
| Tri-ply with a thick bonded base disc | Aluminium core plus an extra-thick impact-bonded disc at the bottom | 20 qt | A big pot needs the strongest bottom it can get; the thick disc is there to stop a hot spot under a heavy load. |
All five name an 18/10 stainless steel interior, all five are rated oven safe to 500 F with the glass lid limited to 350 F, and all five are dishwasher safe. If you only ever simmer, the base-clad 11 qt at $59.99 is the rational buy - at $5.76 per litre of capacity it is the cheapest pot per litre Ciwete sells. If you want to roast bones in the same pot before adding water, the whole-body clad 8 qt or 12 qt is the better tool.
Clarity: the things that actually matter
Cloudy stock is almost always a heat problem, not a pot problem. Keep the liquid at a bare tremble and skim the grey foam in the first twenty minutes; never stir vigorously, because agitation is what breaks fat into droplets that stay suspended. Vegetables go in for the last hour: onion, carrot, celery and a bay leaf, no cabbage-family trim, no starchy peels.
Cooling, storing and freezing
A full 20 qt pot must not go into the fridge as it is. Divide it into shallow containers or cool it in a sink of cold water until it drops below 40 F. Once chilled, the fat cap lifts off in one piece, which is easier than skimming hot.
An 8 qt batch of about 3.5 L fills roughly 3.5 one-quart jars, or 7 pint containers, or 15 ice-cube trays if you freeze in cubes for pan sauces. The 11 qt gives about 5 jars, the 12 qt about 5.5, and the 20 qt about 9. Use refrigerated stock within four to five days and frozen stock within three months.
Bottom line
Buy the pot by the bones you actually accumulate. One roast chicken a week is a 5.2 qt habit. A bird a week plus vegetable trimmings is an 8 qt habit, and it is the size most kitchens should own. A turkey frame twice a year is an 11 qt job and the best value per litre in the range. The 12 qt is for households that want the whole-body clad wall and the extra litre - Ciwete's own listing puts it at 8-10 servings - and the 20 qt is a batch-cooking or lobster-boil pot, not a stock pot for two.
For the pots themselves, see the 5.2 qt soup pot, the 8 qt whole-clad stock pot, the 11 qt stock pot, the 12 qt whole-clad stock pot and the 20 qt stock pot. For background on what stock is, see Wikipedia on stock.
This article was researched and written with AI assistance, reviewed by the Ciwete SEO Team.