"Bone broth? What is bone broth?" This is normally the question I get from
people and friends are not familiar this incredibly health food. I prepare bone broth in my home for sipping,
cooking and to use as a soup base (especially when cold season rolls into
town). Bone broth is rich in minerals
such as magnesium and potassium. The broth has collagen from the bones and can
be beneficial to the body (particularly joints and bone). In addition, I find the effect of drinking
bone broth gentle on my gut and gives my body a "well" feeling. Many people ask what the difference is
between bone broth and stock. The main difference is the method of cooking.
Stock normally depends on high cooking temperatures and shortened cooking
times. Bone broth is dependent slow and low cooking to extract as many nutrients from the bones as possible (I try to always cook 16-18 hours).
Another important aspect of bone broth is the health of animal’s bones.
Getting regular bones from grocery store packaged chicken or beef is not the
best option to getting the most beneficial broth for your body. I like to use bones from pasture raised
organic chickens (do not shy away from feet if you can get them!) for my broth, and will use bones from 100% grass fed beef. I personally prefer the flavor of chicken bone
broth, and find chicken to be more versatile than beef. The nutrients from the chicken promote a
healthy immune system and, as I said before, are great for overall wellness.
When making bone broth it is also important to
add a bit of acidity (I use apple cider vinegar) because it helps draw the
nutrients from the bones. A funny thing about bone broth is that it will turn
into a gelatin state when cooled. To return it to a liquid state just heat it up. If your bone broth does not come to a gelatin
state you may not have cooked the bones long enough. Toward the end of the cooling process I will take a small cup from the pot and allow it to cool to make sure it will gel. Normally, I freeze my bone broth but you can
store it in the fridge for a few days if you are planning on using it right
away. Since I make chicken bone broth I
will use 2-3 chicken carcasses for my broth. I use carcasses that I roast for
chicken for other recipes after I have cleaned to meat off of the chicken carcasses.
One of the great things about bone broth is the
ability to use different flavors. I like heavy garlic and herb bone broth, but
you could make your as mild or as herby as you like. I like to make my salt
free and will add a bit later if using it in cooking. This is an amazing and easy addition to any
winter/wellness arsenal, and it tastes amazing.
Stay tuned because I have a great recipe from
a fellow blogger coming your way in a few days to using bone broth!
Another exciting note (actually two), my recipe for Titletown Tailgating Chili won Miz Helen's 5th Annual Texas Star Chili Cook-off! Thank you to everyone who sent their vote my way! I won a $50 gift certificate to Amazon and am going to use it towards a bit of holiday shopping for my family. The second thing is the photo below. Looks pretty huh? I am starting to use a Canon Rebel Ti4 and have been using a cowboy lighting system for winter photographing. I have a few old pictures with my old camera, but after those post the pictures are getting a lot prettier. I always use to get so sad when my natural lighting was gone, except for weekend cooking, and am happy that this year will be completely different!
Another exciting note (actually two), my recipe for Titletown Tailgating Chili won Miz Helen's 5th Annual Texas Star Chili Cook-off! Thank you to everyone who sent their vote my way! I won a $50 gift certificate to Amazon and am going to use it towards a bit of holiday shopping for my family. The second thing is the photo below. Looks pretty huh? I am starting to use a Canon Rebel Ti4 and have been using a cowboy lighting system for winter photographing. I have a few old pictures with my old camera, but after those post the pictures are getting a lot prettier. I always use to get so sad when my natural lighting was gone, except for weekend cooking, and am happy that this year will be completely different!
Ingredients
2-3 chicken carcasses
4 quarts water
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
3 carrots, roughly chopped
4 celery stalks, roughly chopped
1-2 heads of garlic, peeling removed (this can be adjusted depending
on size and wanted flavor)
2 Tbl whole peppercorns (any color)
1 small bunch of fresh parsley
8 springs of fresh thyme
3 springs of fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
Instructions
Place all ingredients in a large slow cooker set on low. Cook at least 12 hours (I cook about 16-18, but you can cook up to 24). Strain the stock through a mesh strainer. Store in the fridge or cool and store in the freezer.