Beautiful Bone Broth

The Benefits

Many of my clients ask me what's all the hype about bone broth these days. And it's a great question! Because the truth is, "bone broth" has been around for centuries and this hype is really just our intuitive natural wisdom coming back into vogue. Our great great great grandmothers and their ancestors knew of the importance of using every piece of an animal and that soaking bones provided great flavor to water and, great nourishment. 

What they may not have known back in the day, is bone broth is a great source of minerals like calcium, phosphorus, magnesium (and many others) as well as collagen (great for reducing wrinkles, cellulite, improving the health of the digestive tract and boosting immunity), and amino acids that are super healing and nourishing for the bod (namely, proline, glutamine, and glycine).

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that this is NOT a fad. It's an ancient, healing, elixir that works WONDERS for healing inflammation in the body - especially in the digestive tract, and giving you glowing skin. Motivated to try this yet? I hope so! 

Please note, when making this magical broth, try to use the best possible bones you can find. We often get our bones at the local farmers market from pastured chickens or 100% grass-fed cows. Talk to butchers at markets near you - I've found one that now saves me a bunch of collagen-full chicken bones each week. Good luck with this recipe - follow your own intuition and know, after you get the hang of it, it's actually easy and enjoyable to make this nourishing food. 

The Intuitive Recipe  

Suggested Ingredients:

• 2-4 pounds of chicken or beef bones (note marrow and knuckle bones are great for beef broth, while chicken necks, backs and even feet are great here). You can also absolutely use a leftover chicken carcass as well after using it for roast chicken. A great way to honor and use all parts of an animal. 
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (raw if possible)
• 1 or 2 3-inch pieces of seaweed like kombu, wakame, or digitata for extra minerals 
• 1-2 bay leaves
• 1 inch chunk of raw ginger
• 2 cloves of raw garlic 
• 2 tsp of sea salt (you can always add more to taste)
• 1 tsp of black pepper or 5 whole peppercorns
• Enough filtered water to cover all ingredients

Optional Ingredients

• 1-2 dried chilies 
•  veggie scraps for extra flavor and nourishment (I like to use onion and garlic skins and scraps, celery or fennel bottoms and kale stems.) Pro tip: I'll keep the scraps in a freezer in a small bag and scoop out a handful or two every time I'm making the broth. Yay for less waste! 
• Extra herbs for flavor and nutrition - e.g. a few sprigs of thyme, rosemary, or oregano 

Create Your Elixir

1. Add all ingredients except salt + pepper to a slow cooker (or large stock pot) and cover with enough filtered water to just cover all ingredients.
2. Let the all the ingredients sit together - this is primarily for the apple cider vinegar to set in and draw more minerals out of the bones and into the stock.
3. Add the salt and pepper, turn your slow cooker up to high (or stove up to high) and bring to a rolling boil. As soon as the contents are brought to a boil, skim off any foam or scum that has collected, turn down to low and simmer for 12-72 hours. (I usually get impatient end end up finishing somewhere around the 30th hour. )
4. After your desired cooking time. Let the stock cool. Use tongs to carefully remove bones and larger veggies. Strain using a mesh strainer or colander into a large glass or ceramic bowl. From there I like to ladle broth into a few freezer-friendly glass-tupperware or even single-serving mason jars. As the broth cools, you can skim off any fat that has cooled to the top and toss it or use it for cooking! Broth keeps well in the fridge for about a week and in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Enjoy this delicious and deeply healing elixir on its own or use as the base for much of your cooking (rice, beans, veggies, stews, etc). 

*This recipe was inspired by tinkering with Dr. Axe, Free + Native, and Louise Hay/Heather Dane's bone broth recipes.