Nutritional Life

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Chicken bone broth

Making bone broth is a regular thing I love to make. Save your carcass and bones after a roast dinner (you can store these in the freezer until you have enough). Carcasses are inexpensive to buy. Bone broth can be stored in the fridge for 4-5 days and freezes well too. I fill up jam jars and ice cube trays so I can use it when I need it.

The gelatine from bone broth helps to repair your gut as well as supporting your muscles, joints and bones. Bone broth is incredibly good for digestion and a perfect remedy to sip if you’ve had a gluten attack, as it helps to improve the tissues that line your gut and reduces the inflammation.


Ingredients

Makes approx 2 Litres

  • 2 chicken carcasses RAW

  • 1 onion roughly chopped into quarters

  • 1 carrot, roughly chopped

  • 1 stick of celery, roughly chopped

  • 2 garlic cloves

  • 1 tsp ground turmeric

  • big handful of fresh herbs - I like to use a mix of parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage and tarragon

  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

  • Spices (1 Tbsp of each - black peppercorns and fennel seed


Add the carcasses and giblets if you have them into a large saucepan. Add in the onion carrot, celery and garlic and place in the oven to roast for 35-40 mins (FAN 180). If you are using previously roasted carcasses, just reduce the time in the oven to 25 minutes. This process will create a deeper tastier flavoured broth.

Remove from the oven, cover the carcasses with water. Add the turmeric, fresh herbs, apple cider vinegar and spices. Bring to the boil, cover with a lid and leave to simmer on the lowest setting for 10-24 hours. The longer you can simmer, the deeper the flavour, but you need to do a minimum of 10 hours to release all the goodness out of the bones.

Strain into a big jug and use the back of a metal spoon to properly push out all the juices from all the bits you are straining.

Once cooled, cover and put into the fridge to set. This will allow a fat layer to settle on the top. Scoop this off and then you have your bone broth to use and or freeze.

You can now use your bone broth for soup, stock or warm some with a pinch of salt and fresh thyme leaves to sip from a mug.

You can reduce the bone broth for a more concentrated flavour and you will need to season the broth with some sea salt.