Homemade Bone Broth: Nourishing, Low-Carb, Low-Fat, THM:FP

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Got leftover chicken bones? Put them to good use and make my Homemade Bone Broth! This delicious stock is full of nourishing ingredients like garlic, turmeric, and apple cider vinegar. Enjoy a steaming cup of bone broth on its own, or use it in your favorite soups and casseroles. The sky’s the limit!

Making your own bone broth is simple and it’s a great way to implement no-waste practices in your home. Plus, it’s full of protein and natural collagen from the chicken bones. I love to doctor my broth with immunity-boosting ingredients. I always have a batch in my freezer! You guys are going to love this no-effort recipe.

Homemade Bone Broth Ingredients

Creating nutritious broth doesn’t require fancy ingredients. In fact, my recipe tends to vary each time, based on what I have in the fridge! Here are a few components that I ALWAYS use.

Chicken Carcasses: I usually make my homemade bone broth after roasting a few whole chickens. I’ve also used leftover leg and thigh bones with great success. We raise our own meat birds, so I like to get as much as I can out of them!

A lot of people add chicken feet to their bone broth. I have not done that yet, but have heard it adds a lot of protein!

Water: Part of why bone broth is so cheap is because it’s mostly water. It’s funny how the most basic ingredient can be turned into so many flavorful things!

Vegetable Scraps: We eat a lot of vegetable-based meals at my house, so I always have a lot of scraps! What I don’t feed to our pigs, I put in a Ziploc bag to freeze until my next batch of bone broth. Some vegetables I use include carrots, onions, radishes, celery, mushrooms, and even bell peppers.

You should note that you don’t want to use “mushy” vegetables like potatoes, as those can leave a LOT of sediment in your broth.

Apple Cider Vinegar: I know, I know. This sounds like a really weird broth ingredient. But! When you’re making homemade bone broth, you want something acidic to draw out the collagen.

I’ve tried a few different options, including white vinegar. I find apple cider vinegar is mild enough to not affect the flavor but potent enough to get all of that wonderful protein out.

I recommend using Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar as it contains the “mother” which is where the good probiotics are.

Mineral Salt: Many forms of salt are totally stripped of necessary nutrients. I recommend using Himalayan salt or sea salt. These products aren’t as processed and contain all the minerals your body needs to thrive.

Herbs and Spices: The right combination of herbs takes a simple bone broth to a whole new level! Garlic is a must for any bone broth. You can leave the skin on and simply cut the bulb in half. I also cut a one-inch piece of ginger root in half to give my broth extra flavor.

Other fantastic additions include fresh rosemary, parsley, chives, and basil.

I also add a LOT of spices. Turmeric, Himalayan salt, pepper, thyme. I like my broth to be robust, and adding a variety of spices and herbs does the trick.

Crockpot or Stockpot: I am all about keeping it easy, so I make my bone broth right in the crockpot. This allows me to do 100 other things while my broth simmers away.

If you prefer, you can also use a large stockpot.

Gelatin: This ingredient is optional, but a lifesaver. Homemade bone broth usually cools into a gelatin-type consistency with a lot of jiggle. However, there are times when your broth is liquid with no gel to be found.

When this happens, I like to add 1 teaspoon of gelatin per quart of broth. Add this when using your finished homemade bone broth. Warm the broth first, then add the gelatin. 🙂

How to Make the BEST Homemade Bone Broth

This recipe is easy-peasy and a great venture into the world of from-scratch cooking. It’s virtually fool-proof and your return on investment is high.

Next time you make bone-in chicken, save the scraps for stock. It’s an easy habit to get into and it saves a lot of money!

Step One: Cook the Homemade Bone Broth

Place the chicken carcass, water, vegetable scraps, herbs, apple cider vinegar, and sea salt in a large crockpot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or up to overnight.

Alternately, place ingredients in a large stockpot over medium-low heat and let simmer all day.

Allow to cool on the counter before straining.

Step Two: Strain the Broth

To keep your homemade bone broth free of debris, you have to strain it. I do this by first removing the large bones, then pouring the broth through a fine-mesh strainer. This keeps the broth looking pretty and eliminates those stray pieces.

If you let the broth cool, you can also skim the excess fat, keeping this stock low-fat and low-carb.

Step Three: Store the Broth

Time to store the broth! I usually just place mine in gallon-sized freezer bags, but you can also can the liquid. I’ve also frozen it in ice cube trays with great success! To make meal prep a breeze, divide the broth into quart-sized amounts.

Drink a cup when you’re feeling under the weather, make a soup, or add it to your favorite recipes. This is such a versatile staple!

Variations

Chicken bone broth is delish, but sometimes a recipe calls for something else! Here’s how to customize this staple to fit your needs.

Beef Broth

This rich broth is great in pasta dishes! Hint: You can usually ask a butcher for spare beef bones.

Follow the above recipe, but use beef bones (ones with marrow in the middle are best!) and omit the apple cider vinegar. Beef bones have enough natural gelatin on their own!

Vegetable Broth

This gorgeous stock is a must-have for any kitchen. It tastes great and it’s delectable in soups!

Follow the above recipe, but omit the animal bones and apple cider vinegar. Add 1/4 c. tomato paste, and 2 teaspoons raw honey.

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