This is about as old and basic recipe as you can find anywhere. Bone broth probably goes back to when our first cave ancestors learned about fire for cooking their game. It provided a means for them to get ALL nutrition from their catch and was tasty, as well. Many of the Asian dishes I prepare begin with either vegetable, chicken or beef broth as a base ingredient. Same when preparing some of the soups I enjoy in winter. Of course you can always pick up a can or jar of beef stock or broth (same thing) at the grocery store, but it's certainly lacking in many of the nutritional qualities as well as flavor! Why not prepare your own broth and freeze it for use when you need it? Or, as a comforting drink when you have a bad cold or the flu. Some nutritionists will argue as to the health qualities of broth, but there's hardly a culture in the world without a home remedy for colds and flu which doesn't include something like chicken soup.
The important part of making healthful bone broth is to remember that we're going to get all the vitamins, minerals and food value out of the bones and the bone marrow. Not a common practice today, but I remember as a kid....my mother would boil up a batch of big soup bones and my dad would crack them to extract the bone marrow. He would spread it on a slice of bread and we would eat it....really was pretty good as I recall. Just one of those funny old time treats, I suppose.
Anyway, preparing and storing bone broth for when you need it is quite easy, especially if you have a slow cooker or crock pot. You'll find the broth to be more flavorful, by far and healthier, too. And you save a bit of money since you're not buying the broth from the grocery store. The recipe I'm going to share applies to using either beef bones or chicken/turkey bones.
INGREDIENTS
3 - Pounds of beef or chicken/turkey bones
12 Cups Water
1 1/2 Cups Coarsely Chopped Carrots
1 1/2 Cups Coarsely Chopped Leeks
1 Medium White Onion
6 Cloves Fresh Garlic
2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 Teaspoon Bay Leaves
1 Teaspoon Rosemary
1 Teaspoon Black peppercorns
PREPARATION
Simmer bones in a stock pot for about 20 minutes to remove unwanted bits of meat and debris on bones.
Place the bones on a baking sheet in an oven preheated to 450 F degrees. Turn the bones after 20 minutes and continue to cook for an additional 20 minutes.
Pour water into a large stock pot and add the bones, covering them with water. Add the vinegar, cover the pot and allow it to sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. At this time, transfer the contents of the stock pot to a crock pot or slow cooker. Cover the cooker and allow the bones to continue to simmer.*
*Chicken bones/turkey bones should be allowed to continue to simmer in the crock pot for 24 hours. Beef bones should be allowed to do the same for 48 hours. This is how we get all the nutrition out of the marrow of the bones. After the first 2 -3 hours of simmering, remove the foamy layer which forms on the top of the broth.
Add vegetables and spices to the stock pot or crock pot about 8 hours before they are done cooking. This keeps the vegetables from dissolving into the broth, but still imparts the flavor.
When the broth has cooked completely, remove all the vegetables and bones from the crock pot. Strain the broth through a fine screen mesh strainer to remove the larger remaining particles. For a clearer broth, you may choose to strain the broth once more through a cloth strainer.
Pour the broth into a large container and place in the refrigerator overnight. The following day, remove the layer of fat which has risen to the top and set up on the broth. The broth will be gelatinous, since you have extracted all the nutrition and bone marrow value. Just warm it up and it will return to a liquid state.
Pour the broth into freezer quality containers, label it and store it in the freezer for use when you wish to make soup or recipes call for broth. You'll be using the best broth possible, just as expensive restaurants do in their dishes.
** Just a tip from here. We have a small, local butcher shop close to the house. They welcome you to come there and get all the beef and pork bones you want....at no charge. They have barrels and barrels of them as they butcher....and there is a lot of meat left on the rib bones. Also, there are excellent large bones with marrow. You are permitted to go through the bones yourself and get the ones you want. They are for pets, but the bones also work wonderfully for beef broth and don't cost a cent! Check with local small butchers and see if you can't find a similar opportunity.
I hope you'll give this excellent bone broth a try and share the recipe with family and friends. If you have any questions, please email me at: stan.kain@gmail.com Also, check out my recipe blog for many great and simple, but healthy and inexpensive recipes. I'm sure you'll find something there you enjoy!!!
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