How to make your own nutrient rich bone broth

Bone broth is full of nutrients and makes any dish taste richer. Here you’ll learn how to make this delicious superfood at home. With just a few simple ingredients, you’ll have liquid gold to use in your rice, soups or to just drink on its own!

If you’ve ever wondered what the secret to making the most flavorful, nutritious food at home is, bone broth is the answer. In this recipe, we keep it fairly basic in seasoning and use both beef and chicken bones to create an all purpose broth that has flavor and body yet is also mild and versatile.

Reasons to love bone broth

1. Easy and hands-off. Most of the work is done on the stove while it simmers away for hours. The more it cooks the richer it gets, so you can leave this on the heat for as long as you need to make this work into your schedule easily.
2. Rich in nutrients. The longer your broth simmers, the more nutrient dense it gets from breaking down the bones. This leaches all the collagen from the connective tissue which is amazing for your skin, hair, nails, and joints. Protein, gelatin, and various minerals also make this beautiful broth more than worth the effort.
3. Economical and ethical. As the name suggests, the main ingredient in bone broth is bones. Because these cuts are believed to be a throw away item from an animal, the cost is low and easy to get from any local butcher. And by using the bones, we make use of more of the animal than just the meat. I find this to be a more ethical way to consume an animal and respectful of the life it gave for my nourishment.
4. Naturally healing. It’s a long held belief that chicken soup can heal the body, but the main healing component of this dish is actually the broth in the soup. Many cultures use homemade bone broth as a remedy for the cold and flu. It’s also a low-inflammatory food which may promote a healthy gut (source), and the protein in it can aid in balancing blood sugars.

THIS POST CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS WHICH MEANS I MAKE A SMALL COMMISSION AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU. SEE MY FULL DISCLOSURE HERE.

Tools you’ll need

• Sheet pan
• Stock pot
• Colander
• Small strainer
• Cheese cloth
• Funnel
• Mason jars

Making the bone broth

Roast the bones

Preheat your oven to 400F (200C). I roast the bones and chicken feet for about 30-40 minutes to give the bones a nice roasted color and flavor and to remove surface impurities.

Not pictured here is also a bag of frozen bones from two whole chickens I roasted for dinner a few nights prior. I threw all of those along with the chicken feet and the marrow bones in a large stock pot. If you’re not used to roasting them whole at home, you can use the bones from two rotisserie chickens. After I’ve picked all the meat off, I like to save them in a freezer safe bag. I store them in the freezer until I’m ready to make bone broth.

After I remove the bones from the pan, I never let those pan juices and drippings go to waste. I just add a little water to the sheet pan and use a wooden spoon to scrape up the little bits left behind. Pour all of that on top of the bones in the pot because it’s packed with flavor!

Chop the veggies

I only give a very rough chop to all the veggies leaving the parsley whole. The knife work here is minimal, and there isn’t even a need to remove the skins off of the onion and garlic. I throw it all in the pot except the parsley which gets put in toward the end of cooking. Parsley is a delicate herb that doesn’t need a lot of simmer time to release its nutrients, and if it’s added too early, it imparts an unappealing green hue to the broth.

Skim the scum

Once the pot has enough water to cover everything in it, I like to bring it to a soft boil with the lid off to allow it to reduce and get more concentrated.

In the first two hours of cooking it’s important to skim the top of the broth. That’s when most of the residual impurities from the bones and veggies are released and bubble to the surface.

I have a ladle nearby and every once in a while, I’ll check the top for what looks like cloudy bubbles. Taking the bottom of the ladle, I swirl it in circles along the surface of the broth. This causes all of the “scum” to be pushed to the perimeter of the pot. From there it’s easier to just skim from the edge. Afterwards I pour the impurities into a mug and dump them down the sink.

After the broth has reduced about halfway, I’ll cover with a lid, and continue on a low simmer overnight. I add the parsley to the pot in the morning and let it steep for an hour or so.

Remove the bones and veggies

After the broth has simmered for 12-16 hours on the stove, it’s time to drain it. Transfer the bones and other contents into a colander. I like to add another large pot underneath to catch all the residual broth drippings.

Strain the bone broth

I like to strain the broth through cheese cloth and a small strainer to get it as clear as possible. Nest the cheese cloth lined strainer into a funnel and place on top of a mason jar.

After the broth has been properly strained, I end up with 2-3 jars that are full of a beautifully amber homemade bone broth that can be used to amplify the flavor and nourishment of nearly any meal. After it’s cooled, the texture of the broth will be gelatinous. This is good! That’s what you can expect from using chicken feet. If you opted out of using them, you can expect a regular liquid consistency.