Beef broth with parsley

BONE BROTH

If you have read anything at all about reclaiming your health or your kitchen, you’ve read about bone broth.  Though a hot topic recently, it’s been around far longer than any of us have been alive.  You can find a million, well maybe not a million, but you can certainly find hundreds of different bone broth recipes out there.  Some are better than others and the more you can add to your broth, the tastier and deeper the flavor will become.

HOWEVER–hear me, now–

You only truly need three ingredients to make bone broth.

*gasp*

I know, right?  Really.  It’s true.  If you don’t have parsley or parsnips or onions or carrots, you can still make broth.  If you don’t have chicken feet, or fish heads, or chicken livers, you can STILL make broth.  For real, I promise.

What you do have to have are three ingredients: yep, THREE.

1. Water.
2. Bones: Chicken, beef, lamb, bison, game, or fish (use a farmer/free range/or organic here, please).
3. And ACV, otherwise known as Apple Cider Vinegar.

Ok, so maybe it’s four ingredients because really salt is a game changer for flavor, but you can (and I have) made broth without salt and then added it later.  But I digress.

The critical step?

Letting the bones soak in the ACV bath.  Here’s the thing: even if you forget to let it soak, it’s still OK.  Really.  Forget about making the “perfect” broth.  Put that goodness in the pot, and just.get.it.done.

At a minimum, you’re adding awesome, fresh, homemade nutritional goodness made with love to your meals.  And at best, when all the stars align and you’ve menu planned, you’ve orchestrated, and you’ve had those blissful moments of quiet where you can pull it all together perfectly–wait–does that ever happen for you?–It doesn’t for me–

But when you are able to get all the perfect fixings in your pot, your heart might leap for joy and your meals will have that added bonus of having those extra layers of depth and flavor.

But, the bottom line?

Just get that goodness in the pot and get it cooking; you can always spruce it up later.  Here’s how:

In a crock pot:

1. Put the chicken in the pot.
2. Add cold water.
3. Add ACV.
4. Walk away and go do something for 30-60 minutes.
5. Come back; press start.  Now go live life for the next 4-48 hours.
6. Come back, strain, store in fridge or freezer. Be sure to grab that marrow if using marrow bones.

NOTE:  Be careful to leave plenty of room for expansion if you’re freezing your broth, especially if using a glass container (liquids expend when freezing).

CROCK POT BONUS: you can leave it on overnight and let that baby cook while you’re sleeping.  Now that’s what I call service.  Who doesn’t want to wake up to one of their jobs already done?

Need a crock pot?  Try one of these (*affiliate links*):

Crock-Pot SCCPVL610-S-A 6-Quart Cook & Carry Programmable Slow Cooker with Digital Timer, Stainless Steel

Hamilton Beach (33473) Slow Cooker Crock with Touch Pad and Flexible Easy Programming Options, 7 Quart Dishwasher Safe Pot, Silver

On the stove top:

1. Put the chicken in the pot.
2. Add cold water.
3. Add ACV.
4. Walk away and go do something for 30-60 minutes.
5. Come back; turn on the burner.  Bring to a boil and skim any foam; turn burner down and check the water level throughout the day.  If you’re cooking for longer than 4-8 hours and bedtime falls upon you, you’re going to need to turn that burner off and resume cooking in the morning if you want a longer cook time.  Once it’s cooked your desired length of time, strain it, and store in fridge or freezer.  Be sure to grab that marrow if using marrow bones.

NOTE:  Be careful to leave plenty of room for expansion if you’re freezing your broth, especially if using a glass container (liquids expend when freezing).

Anyone notice how much time you have while it’s cooking?

In an Instant Pot:

Need easy?  In an Instant Pot it’s even easier.  Same process as above except set the manual cook time to 120 minutes and let that baby go.  You can saute initially to get a good boil going, skim the foam, hit cancel and then set to Manual, High Pressure, 120 minutes.  Then let it do its thing.

Need an Instant Pot?  Here are a few options (*affiliate links-thank you in advance!*):

Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Maker and Warmer

Instant Pot Ultra 6 Qt 10-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Yogurt Maker, Cake Maker, Egg Cooker, Sauté, Steamer, Warmer, and Sterilizer

The only real key is to know your proportions, but even if you get those wrong you’ll just end up with broth that is a little watery or that isn’t perfectly gelled–HOWEVER, the goodness is still in the pot.  Do you hear me?  It’s still there.  You can always cook it down or spruce it up later.  Just.get.it.in.the.pot.

Why broth is important

Broth is literally the foundation of a healthful kitchen for a number of reasons.  The healing benefits and what broth can do for your gut are extensive, besides the fact that it just adds depth and flavor to all your meals.  You can:

• Cook veggies in it,
• Cook rice or beans in it,
• Use it as a soup base,
• Use it to sip and get more nutrition packed into your day and to the benefit of your gut.

As a gift to yourself and your family, try to find space in your week to get broth made on a regular basis.  Whether it becomes your Sunday morning routine, Saturday night event, or part of a mid-week pattern, determine where in your life you’ll fit this in.  It really doesn’t take long.  Upfront time is required in filling the pot, and there’s time on the back end in straining and storing.  That’s it.  You’ve got 30 minutes into this thing, tops.  You can do it, mama, and I can’t wait to hear how you worked it into your life.

Some books you might enjoy for further reading are Nourishing Traditions, Gut and Psychology Syndrome, and The Heal Your Gut Cookbook.  Our journey started with the first two of these books, and the latter?  Well, I cried when I read it.  It is an absolute gift to anyone starting on the journey to reclaim their health.

Pass along the love

Don’t be hesitant to teach family members (including older children) how to do this.  Not only does it help relieve your mental and physical load, but it teaches them a life skill they can use well into the future.

Final note

If you have histamine issues, broth that’s cooked longer than four hours might not work well for you as more histamines develop with longer cooking times.  Try cooking your broth in a pressure cooker, like an Instant Pot mentioned above to keep cook times to a minimum, or use a product like Collagen Peptides from Vital Nutrients instead.  You can find it on Amazon here or at your local Whole Foods and other health food stores.

Wishing you wellness,

mms