How to Make Nourishing Chicken Bone Broth
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If your goal is to make more nutritious food from home AND save money, learning to make nourishing chicken bone broth from home is going to change the game for you! Especially, because we are going to use the leftover chicken bones and drippings to make it, so you are going to maximize what you get out of your whole chicken.
I am going to show you how to take your whole roasted chicken and turn the leftovers into bone broth. If you missed my post on roasting a whole chicken, you can find it here!
What is bone broth?
Bone broth is a broth that is made from simmering chicken bones for a long period of time, typically 12-24 hours. It is often made with bits of meat and connective tissue still attached. In contrast, broth is made from simmering meat, sometimes with the bones attached for a shorter time (1-2 hours).
The benefit of simmering the bones for a long period of time to make a bone broth, is that nutrients are extracted from the bones, making bone broth a more nutrient dense and nourishing liquid. Some of the nutrients this bone broth is packed with is gelatin, which comes from the collagen in the bones and connective tissue, amino acids that support gut health and joint function, and minerals like calcium magnesium, and phosphorus.
What do you use bone broth for?
Bone broth can be used in many different ways. You can sip it warm for a nutritious drink or you can use it in your cooking. We mainly like to use this as a soup base and for making rice, both of which are made frequently in our house. You can also use it when making beans, sauces, gravies, and basically anything you would need chicken broth for.
What you need to make bone broth:
1 large pot (I aim to make 4 quarts of broth each week)
1 chicken carcass (plus drippings) from a whole roasted chicken. You can also use any other cooked chicken bones or a rotisserie chicken.
4 quarts of water (or however much broth you are wanting to make)
Optional: Salt (this is optional if you want to add additional salt other than what is already on the chicken and drippings, otherwise you can make it as is and add salt when you use it in your cooking. I don’t usually add any extra salt until later when I am using it in my cooking)
Instructions:
- Take the meat off of the bone (do this to save the meat for another recipe or meal, some meat pieces on the bone is totally fine and encouraged)
- Place the chicken carcass in the large pot. Include any onion/garlic that was cooked with the chicken, and all the drippings from the pan. Just pour it all into the large pot.
3. Add about 4 quarts of water, or however much you would like (make sure the chicken is at least covered with water).
4. Place a lid on the pot and simmer on the stove for 12-24 hours. I usually do 12 hours.
5. After you are done simmering it, let it cool slightly and place it into glass mason jars using a fine strainer (one like this) and cool in the fridge.
6. Keep the lids loose until it is fully cooled, and then tighten them.
I usually leave my mason jars full in the fridge for a few days and use it as needed for cooking in our week. If we haven’t used it all after a few days, I will transfer the remaining to gallon bags, label/date, and freeze them for later use.
Things to note
Making bone broth is really very simple and a great way to add nutrition to everyday meals. It also is a much more flavorful broth than what you find in the store and you likely won’t want to go back to store-bought.
When you are cooking, if the flavor seems off or bland, it is likely a salt issue. I encourage you to add a good mineral sea salt until it taste rich and delicious.
I hope this helps you feel confident in making bone broth and that you have many many years of making homemade bone broth!
Enjoy!
Xo, Emily
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