Chicken Bone Broth Recipe – Deluxe Version!
(gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, grain-free, egg-free, nut-free, great for adults too)
While I made and used homemade chicken stock in my cooking when Mila was a baby, I only learnt about bone broths and their value when I went on the GAPS diet when Mila was 2 years old. How I wish I had known about them earlier.
Broth/stock can be used as the liquid when making pasta, grains, boiled veggies, soups, stews, gravies and sauces. It can be used to sauté or roast vegetables or as a marinade for meat. You and your little one can also drink it on its own – this is especially useful when they are unwell and refusing to eat anything. According to the Sally Fallon Morell (author of Nourishing Traditions), bone broth can be introduced as a cooking ingredient and as a drink when your little one is 6 months old.
I drink at least 1 cup a day. Instead of afternoon tea – I have afternoon broth!
Why take the time?
Bone broths are so easy to make and are a really affordable way to include nutrient-dense foods in you and your little one’s diet.
They are an immune boosting, rich source of easily absorbed calcium, magnesium, phosphorous and other trace minerals that support the adrenal glands and the growth of strong bones and teeth.
The gelatine which leaches from the bones is a good source of protein. Gelatine also supports the body’s connective tissues, promotes healthy hair, skin, teeth and nails, improves digestion, allergies, immune health, brain health, and much more.
I am particularly excited by the fact that bone broths can be made from food that you, or the butcher, would otherwise throw away. Whenever you have a roast chicken, a lamb stew or any other meal that includes meat with a bone – keep the bones in a silicone storage bag in your freezer. When you have approximately 2kg’s of bones, put them in a slow cooker and make a large pot of bone broth.
Alternatively ask your local butcher for a bag of bones – they are incredibly cheap! You can also use bones with the meat still on (like a whole chicken) which will make a really rich bone broth – and there will be ready-cooked meat for you to add to other meals!
Key: gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, grain-free, egg-free, nut-free, paleo, for adults too
Makes 3 litres
These measurements are for a 6.5 liter slow cooker.
INGREDIENTS
(t. = teaspoon; T. = tablespoon, C. = cup)
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- 1 whole organic or free-range chicken OR 2kg’s chicken bones and parts from cooked or raw chicken
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- filtered water
- ½ onion, peeled and chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 3 celery sticks, chopped (you can include the leaves too)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 C seaweed
- ½ T. desert or sea salt
- Spices (all optional, but they add to the medicinal qualities of the broth):
- ½ t. turmeric powder
- ½ t. coriander seeds
- ½ t. black cumin seeds
- ½ t. fennel seeds
- ½ t. caraway seeds
- 5 peppercorns, cracked
- 3 cardamom seeds, cracked
- 4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped and left to stand for 10 minutes (or more)
- handful of herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano, parsley or a combination of these)
- filtered water
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METHOD
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- Place the chicken, chicken parts or bones into the slow cooker, cover with water and add the apple cider vinegar. Allow to soak for 1 hour. This gives the apple cider vinegar time to draw out the minerals from the bones.
- Turn your slow cooker onto high. Add the onion, carrots, celery, bay leaves, kombu, salt, and choice of spices to the slow cooker.
- Cover with more cold filtered water if needed to ensure that all the ingredients are covered. Once the liquid starts to boil, turn the heat down to low.
- Check on the slow cooker once or twice during the first 2 hours of cooking. There may be some scum (frothy foam) on the surface. This should be skimmed off.
- If you are using whole chicken or bones with meat on, remove them after 6 hours of cooking. Remove the chicken meat from the bones, allow it to cool and then refrigerate or freeze for use in other meals. Return the bones to the slow cooker and continue cooking for a further 18 hours.
- Be sure to check on the pot occasionally to make sure there is still enough liquid in the pot. Add more if necessary.
- Half an hour before the end of the cooking time, add the herbs and garlic to the slow cooker. This will allow the flavour to infuse without destroying their health benefits from over cooking.
- After 24 hours total cooking time, strain the liquid through a sieve. You should have a dark golden liquid – “liquid gold” I like to call it!
- Fill glass jars to the ¾ mark and freeze for future use. Be sure to fill and freeze some ice cube trays with the stock to add to boiling water when preparing vegetables, grains or pasta for your little one.
- Once cooled a layer of fat will form on the top of the broth. You can remove this and use it for high heat cooking, or leave it in the broth – it is nutrient dense, has immune boosting properties and adds a rich flavor to any meal.
- Broth can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or keep in the freezer for up to 6 months.
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Preparation on the stove:
You can also prepare the stock on the stove top following the same procedure. The pot you cook the stock in should be covered and allowed to simmer on the lowest possible stove setting for 12 hours in total.
Save time & electricity – make bone broth in an Instant Pot!
The Instant Pot helps you cook healthy food fast. You can make almost anything with your Instant Pot and it unlocks a whole new world of recipes. It combines the slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, warmer, pressure cooker, yoghurt maker and sauté pan!
(click image to buy, or find out more)
My brand of choice when it comes to herbs & spices is Good Life Organic.
The product selection from Good Life Organic is free of GMOs, synthetic pesticides, commercial fertilisers and preservatives – giving you pure, natural nutrition with every bite. Their herbs & spices are also non-irradiated – so they maintain their medicinal qualities.
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