Learn how to make bone broth! I’m showing you how I make this nutritious broth, why it’s good for you, and how to use it.
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If you follow me over on Instagram, you’ve probably seen my weekly Meal Prep Monday segment. One of the things I regularly make is chicken bone broth. I’ve gotten a lot of questions and interest in this from my stories, so I decided to share the recipe today.
I started making bone broth more than a year ago. My son who is now almost 2 had some food sensitivities and eczema when he was a baby. Bone broth is a great first food for any baby, but especially kids with food sensitivities. It can help to heal the gut, it’s good for the immune system and it is good for the skin.
What is bone broth and why is it good for you?
Bone broth can be made from chicken or beef bones. It’s made by simmering the bones in water for 24 hours or more. This releases lots of good things from the bones like collagen, proline, glycine and glutamine.
You know how people eat chicken soup when they are sick? It’s not just comforting, it actually helps boost the immune system and help your body heal!
Like I said, I used bone broth as a first food for my son. I would just spoon feed it to him! As he got older, I would add it to his rice or pasta. I also use it when I’m cooking. I definitely think that bone broth played a part in healing my son of his eczema and eventually helping him outgrow all of his food sensitivities.
I’ve gotten into a routine of making bone broth about every other week, so I’ve continued doing it even though my son is better. It’s so good for us and great to have on hand when we get sick!
This article has a lot more information about the nutrition benefits of bone broth if you are wanting to learn more!
How do you make bone broth?
There are many different methods out there, but the basic gist of it is to simmer the bones for 24 hours or more. I like to start with a whole chicken because it adds more flavor to the broth and I end up with some shredded chicken to use in a recipe for dinner. You can also make bone broth using just the bones, skin and other scraps after you cook the chicken in the oven. I’ve included the instructions for this alternate method in the recipe notes.
When making bone broth, I also add vegetables like carrots, celery and onions as well as whole black pepper. This adds extra nutritional benefits to the broth as well as extra flavor.
To get started, I first place the chicken in my crock pot and add water and a splash of lemon juice. I let it sit for an hour before I add the veggies and turn the crock pot on high.
I let it cook for 4-6 hours depending on the size of my chicken. Once the chicken is cooked, I take it out of the pot and remove the meat. The bones and skin go back in the crock pot on low for 24 hours or more to create the bone broth. I save the cooked chicken and shred it to use for dinner!
After the bones simmer for 24 hours or more, I remove all the bones and veggies and toss them. Next, I use a strainer to strain the broth into mason jars. I usually end up with 2 quart-size mason jars full of broth.
Can I Use Leftover Bones instead of a Whole Chicken?
Yes! I often roast my chicken in the oven for dinner and then put all of the bones, leftover skin, veggies and other scraps into the crock pot and fill with water. Then I cook it on low for 24 hours.
What tools do I need?
You’ll need a crockpot to cook the chicken in. I like to use tongs to remove the chicken from the crockpot before I de-bone it. You’ll also need a strainer and mason jars or something to store it in.
How do you use bone broth?
I use bone broth in any recipes where I would use chicken broth such as soups, pot pie or casseroles. Depending on how much is needed, I might use part bone broth and part regular chicken broth so I don’t use up my bone broth all at once.
You can even drink it plain! Sometimes when I’m sick I’ll drink a cup of it plain and it helps boost my immune system. My kids love to drink it plain, too!
If you need to, you can freeze the bone broth too. An easy way to do this is to pour the broth into an ice cube tray and freeze overnight. Then, transfer the cubes into a container or plastic bag and keep in the freezer until you need it.
Here are some of my favorite recipes to use bone broth in
Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
Ranch Chicken Pot Pie
Cheesy Ro*tel Chicken Bake
Homemade Chicken Bone Broth
Curious about bone broth? This nutritious broth is SO good for you! Learn how to make bone broth, why it's good for you and how you can use it in your everyday cooking.
Ingredients
- 1 whole uncooked chicken
- water to fill crockpot
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 large onion
- 4-6 stalks of celery
- 2-3 whole carrots, (peeled if you want but I usually don't peel them)
- 1/2 tbsp whole peppercorn
Instructions
- Place the chicken in the crockpot and remove any gibblets. Fill the crockpot with water almost to the top, leaving about an inch or so of room at the top. Add the lemon juice, cover and let sit with the crockpot off for an hour.
- After an hour, peel and cut the onion into large pieces, cut the celery into 1-inch pieces and cut the carrots into 1-inch pieces. Put all of these veggies into the crockpot. Add the peppercorn. Turn the crockpot on and cook on high for 4-6 hours (depending on how big your chicken is).
- Once the chicken is fulling cooked, remove it from the crockpot (leave the veggies in). Switch the crockpot to a low heat. Let the chicken cool until you can handle it and remove all the meat. Save the meat to use for dinner! Put the bones and skin back into the crockpot. Cook on low for another 20-48 hours.
- Once you are done cooking your bone broth, remove all the bones and veggies and throw them away. Strain the broth into mason jars. Let the broth cool before putting the lids on and storing in the refrigerator.
Notes
How to Make Bone Broth from Leftover Chicken Bones: If you want to make bone broth from the bones, skin and other scraps leftover from a roast chicken, you can do that too! Just put it all in the crockpot and fill with water. Cook on low for 24 hours.
Kim says
Love your recipes. I’m trying out this bone broth recipe today. I usually get bones from a chicken farmer down the road and make it in my instant pot. I decided to do it this way to get a meal out of the chicken as well!
A Savory Feast says
I hope you like this version! We make it almost every week.