Making Homemade Bone Broth - Three Different Ways
- you can buy quality soap bones from your local farmer
- look for animal bones from animals that are feed a quality diet & get lots of sunshine for the highest nutrient count
- save your steak bones, roast bones, and chicken carcasses in a freezer bag until you have enough to make broth
- roast your bones in the oven before simmering for a deeper flavour
Vegetables:
- onions, carrots, celery, and garlic are great vegetables to toss in with your bones
- others to try are bell peppers, mushrooms, or leeks
- you can save vegetable scraps in a freezer bag to use in broth
- make sure you discard any stems, skins, or brown parts of the vegetables so they don't impart bad flavours to your broth
- avoid beets and other vegetables that will give the broth a funky colour
- avoid starchy & cruciferous vegetables like potatoes, cabbage, and broccoli
Apple Cider Vinegar:
- it is suggested that apple cider vinegar can help to draw out the nutrients from the bones
- add a splash to the bones before you set them to simmer
Water:
- the right amount of water to add is to add enough water to cover the bones & vegetables in the pot and a little extra as some will simmer off while you simmer the broth
Today, let's talk through the three different ways you can make bone broth at home. You can make your broth in a slow cooker, a pressure cooker (Instant Pot), or on the stovetop. All three ways have benefits to them and you may want to try all three ways to figure out which one works best for you.
Slow Cooker - this method is great for "set it and forget it". You can toss you ingredients in the slow cooker, turn it on, and forget about it!
Instant Pot - this method works great to "quicken" up the process of making broth. The best broth comes from simmering the bones long enough to extract as much goodness as you can. The Instant Pot helps to speed this up.
Stove top - the best thing about the stovetop method is that you can make as big of a batch as your pot will hold! I often use my big canning pot to make many quarts of broth at one time.
- Fridge - up to 7 days
- Freezer - up to 6 months
- 3 to 4 lbs bones (beef, pork, lamb, chicken)
- 3 to 4 litres of water (fill cooking veseel to above bones)
- 1 to 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar, white or red wine, or lemon juice
- 1 onion, halved, skin removed
- 3 carrots, yucky stems removed
- 3 ribs celery
- optional: garlic cloves, ginger, leeks, bell peppers
- optional: black peppercorns, bay leaf, sea salt
Instructions for all ways:
- Preheat oven to 400F. Place bones on baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 30 to 60 minutes until nicely browned.
1st Way = Instant Pot
- Transfer the bones to the Instant Pot.
- Add vegetables, spices, vinegar, and add water up to the "maximum" fill line in your Instant Pot.
- Choose high pressure setting, set to the maximum time (mine is 4 hours), turn to closed venting, and let it cook for the time.
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Once complete, reset for an additional 4 hours.
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Let the Instant Pot release naturally and allow broth to cool enough to handle.
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Strain out bones, meat, and veggies through a metal strainer or cheesecloth lined colander.
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If using broth as a sipping broth, add salt at this point.
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Pour broth into mason jars (1 litre/quart size) until 3/4 full.
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Transfer to the fridge to cool.
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Once cooled, remove fat from the top.
2nd Way = Stovetop
- Preheat oven to 400F. Place bones on baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 30 to 60 minutes until nicely browned.
- Transfer the bones to a heavy bottomed pot.
- Add vegetables, spices, vinegar, and water until the water is above the level of the bones.
- Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn down to low to simmer the broth.
- Simmer to 8 to 24 hours (or longer if you desire).
- Allow to cool enough to handle.
- Strain out bones, meat, and veggies through a metal strainer or cheesecloth lined colander.
- If using broth as a sipping broth, add salt at this point (to taste).
- Pour broth into mason jars (1 litre/quart size) until 3/4 full.
- Transfer to the fridge to cool.
- Once cooled, remove fat from the top.
3rd Way = Slow Cooker
- Preheat oven to 400F. Place bones on baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 30 to 60 minutes until nicely browned.
- Transfer the bones to a heavy bottomed pot.
- Add vegetables, spices, vinegar, and water until the water is above the level of the bones.
- Set the slow cooker to low.
- Cook for 8 to 24 hours (or longer if you desire).
- Allow to cool enough to handle.
- Strain out bones, meat, and veggies through a metal strainer or cheesecloth lined colander.
- If making a sipping broth, add salt at this point (to taste).
- Pour broth into mason jars (1 litre/quart size) until 3/4 full.
- Transfer to the fridge to cool.
- . Once cooled, remove fat from the top.