Bone Broth is known for its nourishing properties, and this method of making it in a slow cooker makes life easier. Yes, it takes about a day to produce a batch of this broth, but for 22 of those hours your broth will be simmering away in the slow cooker.

Just look at the depth of colour in that glass of bone broth. You know from its deep caramel hue that it’s full of rich flavour. This nourishing broth, prized for its health properties, is delicious to drink straight out of a mug for breakfast, as part of a light meal or in place of tea anytime during the day. Can you imagine the boost it would add to something like a classic beef stew? 

My Introduction to Bone Broth

Quite a few years ago, my naturopath recommended that I start consuming bone broth for its health benefits. Somehow, although it was very trendy at the time, I’d missed the bone broth bus and hadn’t even heard of it. So, she gave me the highlights and, not being a food writer for nothing, I understood right away that she was basically talking about a stock. Not just any stock, but one on steroids, so to speak. It’s a new spin on something old-fashioned.

Although I know a fair bit about food and nutrition for a layperson, I’m not a health and wellness expert and won’t be providing detailed information here about the health benefits of bone broth. My naturopath spoke highly of the beneficial effects of the gelatin in it, and it’s also high in amino acids and other nutrients. You can conduct your own research for more information, perhaps starting out with this article on The Nourished Kitchen site, which I found helpful.

Simple Ingredients

I’ve made bone broth quite a few times since that conversation with my naturopath. I prefer to make mine from beef, although I’ve also transformed a turkey carcass into broth. In my opinion, making a broth like this is one area where it’s important to use organic ingredients if at all possible, especially the bones. Basically, the idea is to draw all the goodness out of them over a period of many hours, so it stands to reason that you would want to start with a product that’s as wholesome as possible, without the pesticide, hormone and antibiotic residues that can be present in some meats produced otherwise. For similar reasons, I also use filtered water.

I keep the ingredients simple and straightforward: organic beef bones, onions, carrots and celery. I went wild the last time I made it and added a few cloves of garlic. Don’t use any starchy vegetables, like potatoes, or they’ll cloud the broth. To enhance both the flavour level and the colour, I roast the bones and vegetables first to caramelize them.

My naturopath and some other sources I consulted mentioned that it’s important to add a couple tablespoons of cider vinegar to the broth to more effectively extract the nutrients. Don’t worry, you won’t notice the vinegar flavour at all.

I keep the flavouring of the broth fairly simple so it’s as versatile as possible. When I reheat it, though, I like to adjust the seasonings and sometimes add a few slices of fresh ginger for an extra punch of flavour and additional health benefits.

So tasty. So nutritious.

24 Hours to Goodness

I’ve made quite a few stocks over the years, but typically have simmered them only a few hours. Making a bone broth is about a 24-hour endeavour, to extract as many nutrients from the bones as possible.

One last point before getting to the recipe: the long, slow cooking process starts to break down the bones, and they can be somewhat crumbly at the end of the cooking period. I strain the broth through a fine mesh sieve to capture as many bits as possible. From my reading, some people even use a coffee strainer, although I find my sieve does the trick.

While this recipe takes a lot of time, the vast majority of it requires no activity on your part. And at the end of it you’ll have about four quarts of bone broth. That’s a lot of cups of goodness.

Let’s Make Bone Broth

Looking for More Soup Ideas?

Thinking of bone broth has me thinking of other rich and meaty dishes. Here are a few that you might like to make too: Prime Rib; Hungarian Goulash; and Braised Beef Short Ribs.

^{First Published 2015 02 6
Republished 2022 10 26}