The benefits of bone broth are plenty and I include it as a recommended diet staple to all of my clients. The gut healing nutrients it contains are the biggest reason I’m such a proponent of this tasty treat, with the added bonus of being so easy to make. If I don’t have a leftover turkey carcass from Thanksgiving or Christmas, I buy bones from a local butcher and I only use the bones are from a grass fed chicken or cow. My go-to is chicken or turkey, but you can use beef, or fish bones with the same benefits.
This recipe, from Wellness Mama, is my current favourite. You can use the stove, slow cooker, or an Instant Pot. My personal favourite is the Instant Pot – I love that I can put it all together in seconds and then be able to enjoy a tasty snack just a few hours afterwards. Pick whichever method you prefer, as each one produces all the benefits!
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs bones from a grass-fed, organic source (I use 1 turkey carcass or 2 chickens)
- 2 chicken feet (optional)
- 8 C water
- 2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1 onion
- 2 carrots
- 2 stalks of celery
- 1 bunch parsley (optional)
- 1 TBSP sea salt (optional)
- 1 tsp peppercorns (optional)
- herbs and spices to taste (optional)
- 2 cloves garlic (optional)
Instructions:
- Put bones in a large stock pot, slow cooker, or Instant Pot. Cover with cool, filtered water and apple cider vinegar and let sit for 20-30 minutes (this helps pull calcium and other minerals from the bones).
- Rough chop onion, carrots and celery and add to the pot – I peel the onion, but I don’t bother with the carrots.
- Add salt, pepper, spices and any herbs you want to use.
- For stovetop, cover, bring broth to a boil, reduce to a simmer and simmer for 8-10 hours. For slowcooker method, cover and set to cook on low for 10 hours. For an Instant Pot, cover and set the pot to manual for 2-3 hours. The longer you leave the broth to cook, the greater the nutrient value of the broth.
- For stovetop and slow cookers, you’ll need to remove the impurities that float to the surface during the first few hours of simmering. Scoop off the frothy/foamy layer with a big spoon and discard. Grass-fed bones will produce much less of this layer than conventional bones…I have only used grass-fed bones and have never had to do this step.
- Remove from heat and let cool enough to transfer to mason jars for storage.
This recipe makes a large batch, so store leftovers in a mason jar in the fridge for 3-4 days, or in the freezer for up to a year…although, it doesn’t last longer than a couple weeks in our house! 🙂
Give it a try and let me know what you think! If you have your own favourite recipe you use, please share!