Chicken broth is the backbone of many dishes and its healing properties are unparallel. Learn to make it – it’s easy and even though you need to simmer it for 12-24 hours, it’s not time you need to spend in the kitchen.
The more I work with food, the more it takes me back down memory lane. Coming from an Eastern European background, we never used to buy chicken stock in a carton – it was all made from scratch. We would buy pre-bundled “chicken stock veggies” consisting of carrots, onions, garlic and celery sticks and pop them into the broth for hours of simmering. I then lived in Asia where heads and feet of animals are highly valued. I now appreciate them – they contain high amounts of gelatin which can be extracted when simmered for a few hours. Gelatin has amazing healing properties – not only is it good for gut repair (which is key in dealing with autoimmune disorders hence thyroid conditions) but it gets you through colds and flus in no time. There is an old Jewish saying that a “good broth will resurrect the dead.” Imagine what it can do for you :-).
Together with my clients, we are now discovering the power of this broth – returning energy, fewer colds, allergies and food sensitivities. I strongly urge you to start going back to the way we used to make food. Real food. Not packaged, not processed, not dried, hydrogenated, fortified or vacuum-sealed. Just real food.
Get more delicious healing recipes and learn how to rebalance your hormones with food in my book, Cooking for Hormone Balance.
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- 1 whole free-range organic chicken or 2-3 pounds of bony chicken parts such as necks, wings, backs, feet, head
- gizzards from one chicken (optional)
- feet from the chicken (feet are very high in gelatin)
- head from one chicken (optional)
- 3 quarts (liters) of cold filtered water
- 2 tbsps of apple cider vinegar
- 1 large onion,
coarsely chopped - 2 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 3 celery sticks, coarsely chopped
- 1 bunch parsley
- If you are using a whole chicken, chop off the wings, the neck and the head if you are using them. Using organic, free-range chicken is vital, do not penny-pinch on this one.
- Cut chicken parts to several pieces.
- Place chicken parts, water, vinegar and all the vegetables except for parsley in a large stainless steel pot.
- Let it stand for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Bring to a boil, cover the pot and then reduce the heat to simmer.
- Simmer for 12 to 24 hours on low heat; the longer you cook the stock the more flavor and nutrition you will get from it.
- About 10 minutes before finishing, add parsley – it will impart additional minerals to the broth.
- Remove large chicken pieces, let them cool and remove the flesh from the carcass – you can use it in salads,
sandwiches and spreads - Strain the stock into a large bowl and let it cool in the fridge till the fat rises to the top and congeals.
- Skim off the fat and reserve the stock in covered glass containers.
- Freeze some of the stock for maximum freshness.
A few soup ideas to use this chicken stock:
Seafood Leek Soup – one of my absolute favorites
Sausage, Bean and Sauerkraut Soup – a way to get to a man’s heart from this hearty meal
Apple Squash Soup and Coconut Milk – an easy way to become a dinner party sensation
Inspired by Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon
Looking for fresh natural chicken remember your local 4H clubs… This kids monitor the chickens just like running a business. Each bird was tagged and information about food and weight gain. The family I received my chickens from had 3 children in 4Hmeaning they had 300 meat chickens. These little business people are eager to help.
I gave them $50 for their time and effort.
I have been making my bone broth in the crock pot. I cook it down about 2-3 days until the bones are falling apart with any pressure applied to them. I don’t feel like a have to babysit my crock pot, so the longer cook time isn’t a burden.
Hi Magdalena,
Thank you for all your tips and information. I am learning so much from you. Two questions:
Is it acceptable to make bone broth by cooking a whole chicken in my Instapot ? I’ve done this several times as it saves a whole lot of time. Or, does it have to cook slowly in order to reap the benefits?
Also, I noticed that the bone broth taste best when I don’t scoop the fat off of the top. Is that acceptable as well?
I love making bone broth and freezing it. The last time I froze the broth in a glass mason jar it broke. I left at least an inch at the top and also made sure it was cold before freezing. Not sure what I did wrong. Can you explain how you store in the freezer? Thanks
You cannot use glass to freeze as the water in broth expands. You must use plastic . I suggest cooling then fill zip locks, ensure seal then freeze flat . They take up less space
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Can this stock/broth be made in a crockpot?
Hov long do I have to Cook the chiken, when using a pressure cooker?
Fill the instant pot with as many bones as you can fit along with the other ingredients. I throw in lots of dried herbs too so I end up with a finished product. i use onion skins because they have a high amount of antihistamines. I also throw in several organic eggshells so my broth also provides calcium. I am not sure how one can simmer the meat 24 hours and still have flavor in the meat because it gets boiled out in to the broth which makes the MOST excellent broth. The maximum time to pressure cook is 2 hours. if you want to slow release try 1 1/2 hours and then check the bones. high pressure cooking the bones beyond 2 hours makes them dissolve and the broth is funky. that also happens if you simmer too much longer than 24 hours. my bone broth turns out very gelatinous this way. i have to switch to an IP because simmering that long creates too much histamines for me. I’ve been making stock(bone broth) for 25 years. I make over a dozen types of soups. There’s no limit to soups. I love the medicinal additions!
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I have struggled wit Hashimoto, low thyroid Adrenal fatigue (I found out there’s no such thing as adrenal fatigue?) I am planning to regain or reclaim my life from the symptoms of these issue. So I’m looking for any info that will point the right direction