I make bone broth on a routine basis because we eat a lot of pasture-raised organic chicken and there’s NO WAY I’m letting those precious drippins and bones go to waste!
Also, bone broth is an old, trusted friend of mine.
Its nutrient, gelatin and collagen content is the reason I recommend it to my clients suffering from pelvic organ prolapse, chronic inflammation and joint pain, gut dysbiosis and a history of restrictive (under-eating) and malnourishment as well as my pregnant and postpartum mommas!
Five years ago when I was SUPER sick with three parasites and Candida overgrowth, my body couldn’t tolerate many foods.
I was malnourished and had horrible stomach pains more often than not.
I had heard of bone broth and it’s ability to sooth and heal/seal the gut, so I decided to give it a shot.
It sounded warm, soothing and easy to digest, so why not?
I can still remember breathing a sigh of relief when I drank my first mug.
The salty, nutritious goodness of gelatin, collagen, and amino acids from the chicken meat and bones PLUS the vitamins and minerals from the veggies I had used, it was bringing me back to life.
Finally I had something that I could consistency eat that didn’t make me feel terrible.
PLUS it was also sealing my leaky gut, helping me heal a bit.
It was giving me nutrition at a time when I was struggling to eat enough food to sustain my body and had dysbiosis that mades it difficult to sufficiently extract nutrients from the food that I was eating.
“Good broth will resurrect the dead,” - South American proverb.
We easily eat a roasted chicken once or twice a week so I pop the bones, carcass and drippings in a ziplock bag and throw them in the freezer.
I typically wait until I have two birds worth of bones before I made a broth.
Even when I have grass-fed beef bones, I STILL make add in the chicken.
Beef broth is a lot of nutrient bang for your buck, but chicken broth has a milder taste, so mixing the two is my preferred broth.
If I make the combo, then I start the roasted beef bones FIRST for 12 hours and then add in the chicken.
Chicken doesn’t need as long of a cook time as the beef bones do, and I don’t love the flavor of a bone broth that’s been cooked for too long.
Ok, so here are my super simple directions for making bone broth.
Stephanie Gadreau of Stupid Easy Paleo has recipe for making it in the Instant Pot.
I don’t go that route, but if you’re into your Instant Pot, then try that version!
Chicken Bone Broth Instructions (not a recipe) -easiest done on the weekend if you work a traditional work schedule, since you have to monitor it for 24 hours.
1. Take two-three chickens worth of bones (I usually have them frozen from previous meals) and pour 1/4 cup of Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar or lemon juice on the bones and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Cover the bones with filtered or spring water (fluoride and chlorine-free if possible, but do what you can, #persistenceoverperfection!)
3. Bring water to boil.
4. Optional-Throw in 1-2 organic onions (whole is fine) and 2-3 cloves of garlic.
5. Add in any other veggie scraps that you have hanging around! I frequently use celery stalks or hearts, carrots, or sweet potatoes. I do not respond well to nightshades, so no potatoes, peppers, tomatoes or eggplant.
6. Allow to continue to boil with the veggies for 5 minutes, then reduce to a simmer. You can transfer to a pre-heated crockpot if you feel safer, but I leave mine on the stove, because I live on the edge. **Making sure there is nothing flammable nearby.
7. Simmer broth for 12 to 20 hours is fine. Longer means more nutrients, shorter time makes the broth taste better. I like to check the bones and make sure they are soft before taking the broth off the heat). Keep an eye on the water level and add more water when necessary. I top it off before I go to bed.
8. Don’t add any water (unless absolutely necessary) in the last 5 hours because it dilutes your rich broth.
9. Turn off the heat and let broth cool a bit.
10. Strain veggies and bones! I use something like this to scoop out the bones and veggies, DO NOT THROW THEM OUT!
If you miss a few bones, it’s not the end of the world, IF you checked to make sure the bones were easily crushable and not choking hazards.
11. I freeze extra broth-or broth I don’t want to use immediately, in bags and distribute the rest into jars.
It’s best to divide it up according to how much you will use in one sitting.
When the broth cools, if you included skin or gelatinous fat from when you cooked the bird, a layer of fat will form on the top. This will ESPECIALLY happen if you included beef bones.
The fat layer helps keeps the bone broth by sealing out bacteria, so leave it on there!
To read more about bone broth, click the links below!
Bone Broth Benefits: Everything You Need To Know, Chris Kresser
Four Simple Gut Healing Recipes, Kelly Brogan, MD
Give Foods for Eating Your Depression Away, Kelly Brogan, MD.
Why Broth Is Beautiful, Weston A. Price
Can Bone Broth Heal Teeth Naturally?, Dr. Steven Lin
Bone broth not agreeing with you? You might have histamine intolerance! Read this article: Do You Suffer From Histamine Intolerance?, Dr. Kellyann
Struggle with digestion? Take my FREE Digital course, Better Than Kegels. Register here.
Sarah Smith is a personal trainer, level two Russian Kettlebell Instructor, postnatal fitness specialist and pelvic floor and gut health advocate working online and in Raleigh, North Carolina.
She specializes in helping women online and in-person feel strong, confident and capable in their bodies!
Sarah is a mom to three boys and one English Bulldog. She loves soil, coffee and not folding laundry.