Hola Mi Gente,

This post has been a long time coming! If you follow along on Instagram, you’ll often hear me talking about cooking my rice in bone broth, or the the wonders of using it as a base in my soups. If you’ve never heard of bone broth, it is basically the process of cooking regular home-made broth either for an extended period of time–or under extreme pressure–in order to extract the highest amount of collagen and gelatin from the bones.

now let’s talk about the difference between bone broth, stock, and regular broth is, because I think it’s important to know what the difference is.

To make a basic broth, you can use leftover meat and vegetables you have on hand. Typically in a broth, there is a higher ratio of meat to bones. When making a stock, you use the same amount of meat and bones. And to make a bone broth, you use exclusively bones and some good root vegetables.

In summary:

now, if you’ve never heard of bone broth before, there are a couple of reasons that the gut health/real food world has gone a little wild over it in the last few years:

1. The process of drawing out the nutrients from bones creates a broth that is ultra rich in collagen (which is super good for your skin!) and gelatin which is incredible for healing your intestinal and gut lining. Why should you care about this? Per the National Institute of Health  70% of your body’s immune system is created in your gut–this is where good bacteria helps ward off external pathogens and bad bacterias. Sometimes, because of our eating habits, our intestinal linings can become weakened and this can result in tears. This is called leaky-gut syndrome, and aside from changing our eating habits and ingesting good probiotics, it is really helpful to consume products high in gelatin, as this helps the intestinal lining heal and seal.
2. You get some really great minerals from bone broth like, magnesium, calcium, and phosphorus which are all really great for strong bones!
3. IT TASTES DELICIOUS. Very science of me, I know.

so if you’ve never had bone broth…what can you do with it?

I’m so glad you asked! There are a couple of different ways to store or use bone broth:

• You can save it in quart jars for up to two weeks in the fridge and use it in place of regular broth in your soups. It’s also great when used to cook your grains in it–I love cooking my wild rice in bone broth for some extra hearty sabores.
• You can freeze it in ice cube trays and use a cube here are there for flavor in your sofritos.
• You can drink it warm alone, or accompanied with a few extras. My favorite way to drink it is with a little lemon juice, some rice, and a few raw vegetables thrown in, like this:

A Few Tips For Making Bone Broth

1. Always roast your bones. This process helps start draw out the minerals, and allows you to scrape and use some of the fatty oils that come off the bones. I like to put my oven on broil, and roast my bones until they are golden brown, and have released some of the oils.

2. Leave your skins on your onion and garlic. Believe it or not, the skins from your onion and garlic possess extra nutrients and antioxidants that you           don’t get from just the vegetable itself. Leave them on for extra flavor and nutrients; you’ll end up straining the broth in the end anyway.

3.  If you are pressed for time, consider an instant-pot. I know I sound like a broken record, because I really really love my instant pot, BUT, making bone broth can be a long process. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy a good stovetop version because it makes my house smell wonderful for two days. But know that going into this process: a good bone broth takes 24-48 hours draw out the minerals and gelatin in the bones. If you have the time to just let this simmer on low for that long, that’s awesome! I still do it from time-to-time. But more often than not these days, I don’t have the time for that. In an instant pot you can cook your bone broth in 4 hours and get the same results as the stovetop version.

4. Leave the joints on your bones. These odds and ends are really, really nutrient rich, so you’re going to want to leave them on! This is true for whatever kind of broth you’re making, whether it’s chicken, beef, or lamb. Additionally, for chicken bone broth, bones like chicken feet are extremely dense in nutrients. If you have no idea where to find these, ask your local butcher! They usually have some in the back, and some butchers even have pre-made bone packages for broth makers.

5. Don’t freak out when you store your broth in the fridge, and when you take it out to use it, it looks like a blob of jello. This is supposed to happen–and it means you did it right because you extracted the maximum amount of gelatin from your bones! Once you reheat it, it will liquify again.

6. Save your bones/carcasses in between bone broths. Anytime I make roast chicken, or eat beef short ribs, I save the bones in a plastic bag in the freezer. That way the next time I want to make bone broth, I have a good supply!

I know this may seem like a lot, but once you streamline this process, or take the time to prepare it during the weekend it’s really worth it! It adds so much flavor to your food, makes for an amazing sick-meal, AND it’s so good for you!

Love, love, love, and gut health,

Bone Broth

A nutrient dense, gut-healing broth to add to soups, use in cooking, or drink on its own.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 day d

Total Time 1 day d 25 minutes mins

Servings 2 Quarts

Ingredients

  

• 2 Lbs Bones chicken, beef, or lamb
• 1 Onion Sliced in Half Skin On
• 4 Cloves garlic Skin On
• 1 Knob Raw Ginger
• 2 TBSP Turmeric
• 2 T TBSP Salt additional to taste
• 4 Whole Carrots
• 4 Celery Stalks
• 10-12 C Filtered Water
• 2-4 Sprigs Fresh Herbs (Rosemary/Thyme/Oregano)
• 2 TBSP Organic Apple Cider Vinegar

Instructions

 

For stovetop

• Set your oven to broil and roast your bones until they are golden brown and have released some of their fatty oils (about 6-10 minutes). Pour bones, drippings, and all other ingredients in an 8-qt stock pot. Cover with filtered water and bring to a rolling boil. Lower heat, and cook for 24-48 hours, stirring every few hours, and bringing to a low boil 4-6 times throughout cooking. Strain and store when finished.

For Instant Pot

• Set your oven to broil and roast your bones until they are golden brown and have released some of their fatty oils (about 6-10 minutes). Pour bones, drippings and all other ingredients in the instant pot and cover with filtered water. Set instant pot to soup setting and increase time to 240 minutes. When the cycle is finished, strain and store.

Mary-Beth Johnson

Mary-Beth is a creative, food-obsessed, Georgia transplant living Chicago. She is proudly and fiercely Latina, and more specifically Chapina. In her day to day she is a food educator to students around Chicagoland aged 3 to 80+, both virtually and in-person. She is passionate about cultivating the truth that every person has an understanding of food that deserves being brought to the table, and that time in the kitchen can be sacred, passionate, and an act of love for self and others. Outside the kitchen you can find her at the intersections of infertility, chronic illness, and a deep love for the dignity of all humans. She hopes to create a space that is holistic about the role of food in the social, political, relational, and physiological dynamics of our world.