Bone Broths

Naked chicken broth.

I have been making my own stocks for years and freezing them to use in soups but lately I have been making smaller batches and starting my day with a cup of broth instead of coffee.  I probably won't do this everyday but when the mood strikes me, it is easy to pop the ingredients into the slow cooker for a couple of days and then strain to drink.

Homemade broth have a lot of vital nutrients.  They are good for gut health and are rich in glucosamine and chondroitin which are good for skin, bones and cartilage; and both of which are very expensive to buy in pill form if you wish to take as a supplement.

Beef broth with a side of avocado on chia seed crackers.

Printer Version

• 1 small bag of beef bones or chicken bones
• 1 large onion, peeled and quartered
• 2 carrots, peeled or scrubbed if organic
• 2 stalks of celery, broken up to fit the pot
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 3 peppercorns
• 2 bay leaves
• A few sprigs each of thyme, rosemary, sage, & parsley
• 2 Tbsps. of apple cider vinegar
• unrefined sea salt to taste
• Enough filtered water to cover ingredients in pot

Prepare vegetables and place with bones in a slow cooker for 24 - 48 hours.  Strain, cool and portion into containers.  I strain the bones and vegetables and then strain again through fine muslin cheesecloth to take out the finer bits.  After refrigeration, simply skim off any hardened fat that has risen to the top.  Reheat and enjoy!

The yield will depend on the size of the slow cooker and the amount of liquid you add to the pot.  I usually can make a couple of litres in a small slow cooker with a handful of beef bones or the carcass of one small chicken.