Doesn’t bone broth sound intimidating? It did to me. It felt like what a witch would be stirring up on Halloween. However, bone broth is easy to make and ridiculously great for you health.
If you are roasting a chicken in the slow cooker, then making chicken stock overnight is super easy. However, you can also make bone broth from just bones. These bones you can get from a butcher, local farmer, local health food store or US Wellness Meats for online ordering. I got mine from Gilcrest Natural Farm at the Davidson farmers market.
You really want to make sure you are using quality bones for optimum results.
Before we get to the how to, let’s talk about why bone broth is so great for your health.
– the gelatin found in bone broth helps heal the gut and promote healthy digestion
– reduces joint pain and inflammation
– is chockfull of minerals which promotes healthy and strong bones for you
– inhibits infection and promotes a healthy immune system
– promotes healthy hair and nail growth
– aids in muscle repair and growth
So let’s get to it.
Roasted Chicken Bone Broth
– 2-3 pounds of chicken bones (backs, necks, etc)
– 1 tsp salt
– 1 tsp pepper
– drizzle of olive oil
– 1 bay leaf
– 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
– Onions, carrots, celery, parsley (all optional)
– 1 Tbsp tamari (optional for a darker broth- I did not use)
*Note, you can use any type of bones that you want- beef, chicken, bison, duck, turkey, etc.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the bones in a Dutch oven along with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Roast for 30-45 minutes until fragrant.
Remove from oven and add water, enough to cover the bones.
Add the bay leaf and chopped vegetables if you prefer (adds flavor, but it optional). I added garlic cloves, carrots and onions.
Add 1 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar. Don’t skip this step, as the vinegar helps to draw minerals out of the bone making for a more health-potent broth.
Bring the pot to a boil then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for a minimum of 12 hours. This is easy to do if you are around for the house for the day, but if this amount of time makes you uncomfortable, use a slow cooker and cook on low for a minimum of 12 hours, up to 24 hours.
Strain the broth to remove the bones and vegetables.
Strain one more time through a sieve or cheese cloth to make for a more clear broth.
At this point the broth is ready! You can use it in soups of course, but also to add nutritional value when cooking rice or quinoa, or just drink a warm mug of it. I usually freeze half of it using the incredible souper cubes.
Please note that after refrigeration, the bone broth will be gelatinous. This is a good thing, meaning you properly extracted the ‘good stuff’ from the bones! Once heated, it will be completely fluid and smooth.
I won’t say you’ll never buy broth from the store again (I know I do!), but this broth is more flavorful and contains more nutrients than any you will find on a store shelf.
Let’s chat…
What homemade staple or food is most intimidating to you?
Though I have yet to try it, homemade pasta sounds intimidating to me!
John J. says
Chef Sherry is all over this!
Al says
So, what did you pay for those bones at DFM? Just curious.
Brittany Dixon says
About $3.50! 🙂
Maryea {happy healthy mama} says
I love making homemade bone broth. Great tutorial!
Jodi says
One of my best friends made all her baby formula for her last kiddo w bone broth bc she couldn’t tolerate milk, soy, almond milk…. It was a lot of work but she really was happy w it! And her baby loved it!
Brittany Dixon says
Oh wow, hats off to her- that’s impressive!
Linz @ Itz Linz says
ok definitely intimidating – thanks for breaking it down! 🙂
Andrea says
Ever use your pressure cooker to make broth/stock? I feel it extracts the most flavor, collagen and cartiladge and is the only way I make stock now.
As for pasta…it is fun to make but I usually only bother if I’m making a stuffed pasta using my own ingredients. Otherwise a store bought pasta is usually good enough.
Intimidating…tomato items…sauce, BBQ, ketchup…so many tomatoes, so much peeling, seeding, chopping, boiling down, etc. And for $0.99 at Wegmans for a jar of pasta sauce it just doesn’t feel worth the effort.
Brittany Dixon says
I haven’t ever used my pressure cooker for stock, but I love the idea! How do you do it?
Andrea says
I recommend checking out hippressurecooking.com and read what Laura has to say. Here is her techinique for stock and you’ll note she includes an acid to extract the minerals from the bones. And really…if you want to try some really neat PC recipes, hers are some of the best!
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooked-chicken-broth-lesson-6-making-chicken-stock-in-the-pressure-cooker/
Erin says
great tutorial, but you may want to consider cooking for longer than 2 hours. Everything I have ever read about bone broth has suggested that to get the most nutrients and minerals out of the bones you really need to cook them for close to 24 hrs or until the bones are really falling apart. With less time you will still get some minerals, but the longer you cook it the more nutrient you will extract. You can speed up the process and cook for less time if you use a pressure cooker.
Great reminder that I need to try this some time!
Brittany Dixon says
Definitely a great point- the longer you simmer, the better! The research I’ve seen says two hours is good, especially if you add the vinegar, but yes, longer is great.
If you don’t have time to simmer that long, then you can actually reuse the bones, too, until they are falling apart. I haven’t done that personally yet though.
And I’ve never used my pressure cooker for it, but really want to now!
Erin says
If you have a pressure cooker, you should totally try it. Nomnom Paleo has a recipe for bone broth in the pressure cooker.
Brittany Dixon says
Awesome, I’ll search the site for it- THANKS! 🙂
Patti says
I simmered mine for 13 hours and the backbones were pretty much disintegrated. Gonna try it for 24 hours this time and see if there’s a noticeable difference in texture or taste.
Lindsay@Fuel My Family says
I do 24 hours in crockpot. Everything I read said slower and longer extracts more while keeping integrity of minerals.
Kim @ healthy nest says
Thank you for sharing this!! I’ve been thinking about trying out the bone broth thing lately. My only true hold-up right now is getting my hands on some good bones (that sounds so weird…) but I’m getting there!! 🙂
Jen@HealthyFoodandFamily says
Interesting and intriguing! I’ve never even heard of this before!
Heather @ What Does She Do All Day? says
I make broth after roasting a whole chicken. I usually end up with about 10 cups of broth. It really makes delicious broth! I still buy broth, too, but typically for recipes that call for a lot of broth. I then mix half homemade half store bought, so I don’t use up all my homemade stuff at once!
Ali says
Thank you for posting this! I’ve been hearing about how good bone broth is for you, but always felt intimidated by it. I feel better about trying it now!
Becky@TheSavedRunner says
I have never even heard of homemade bone broth, but I love the idea and all of the benefits from it. Thank you for sharing!
Christina says
This is probably a silly question….but is “bone broth” different from what I make when I roast a whole chicken in my crock pot, then pull off the meat, cover the carcass with water (and add random veggies I have on hand), and simmer it all day to make chicken broth? I’ve never heard the term bone broth before, hence my confusion 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Same thing, different wording! 🙂
I made some this week in the crockpot using the same method you described (and I linked to above, too in case anyone is interested in a how-to for the crockpot version ;)). It may be a good idea to add a tbsp of ACV though to help pull more minerals from the bone, but you’re right- same thing! Isn’t it delicious?
Maria says
I too want to try my hand at homemade pasta this year but am so scared!
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma) says
I’ve been really wanting to make homemade broth but I am sooo intimidated…I don’t know why! I know it’s not difficult!
Jen says
I am always so, so impressed with how brave you are in the kitchen! You make it look way less intimidating. I’m really grossed out by bones in meat though, so I’m not sure I’m ready for this but I’ll keep it in mind for when I get the courage!
Lauren B. says
Never tried making my own bone broth, but now I may have to! I think making homemade pasta or canning ANYTHING is really intimidating to me.
Danica @ It's Progression says
I’ll be totally honest and say that this completely intimidates me. I do, however, really want to try it sometime – thanks for writing up this post!!
Maria says
I’ve been craving homemade chicken noodle soup and we all know that it’s SO MUCH BETTER with homemade broth and a cooked chicken. i have a recipe for homemade noodles for it and my mom swears it’s way easier than what you would think…
Also, I now have another use for my new dutch oven! Woo!
Jennifer says
My husband and I stayed at a B&B about 2 weeks ago and the inn keepers cook everything from scratch. One night we were there we made our own homemade pasta! It was SO delish!! And easy too! Only thing is you need a pasta maker and those can be kind of pricey!
Christine says
So I’ve been really wanting to try this but have been nervous because of comments left by others saying the smell is awful??
Giselle@myhealthyhappyhome says
I just made chicken broth yesterday with my leftover roasted chicken. I do it every time we have a whole chicken then freeze it in ice cube trays for future use. this time I ended up making some quick chicken soup with the majority of it to help my son fight off his cold. Hope it works!
Brittany @ Delights and Delectables says
I’ve been too intimidated to try this, but I’m going to take the leap and do it!
Lisa says
Love this! Im enjoying this blog more and more and more! Im going to be trying this recipe!!
Thanks!
Lisa says
Which blog platform do you use?
Thank you
Patti says
How funny, I made my first batch of broth yesterday and have got another batch going today! I was so intimidated that I procrastinated making it for the last year, but it was SO easy!
I added it to our scrambled eggs this morning, and my 8 year old declared that the eggs were the best thing she’d ever put in her mouth! lol
We eat “Paleo” and I came across the GAPS Diet to try to rid my son’s eczema (GAPS recommends tons of bone broth). So we are going to incorporate broth a lot more to help heal our guts. Thanks for this post — love your blog!
Ellyn says
Hi Brittany, I love your post about this homemade bone broth. I never bought or homemade any bone broth before. I must try it. I boil soup every day using chicken bones or sometimes pork bones. I put the bones and the veggie all together into a slow cooker and let it simmer for 8 hours.
Tia says
My mom made this a lot when I was a kid! She would cook veggies and tofu in the broth. I always thought it was considered Chinese food! haha
Courtney says
If you store the broth in the refrigerator, how long does it last?
Thanks!
Brittany Dixon says
I’d try to use it within 3-4 days if stored in the fridge, but will be good in the freezer up to 6 months!
Laura says
Just wondering if you can use bones from last night’s steak or pork chops or do I need to go to the butcher and buy bones. Specifically for this purpose?
Brittany Dixon says
Not at all- certainly use any leftover ones you have! I’ve done this several times after roasting a chicken.
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