This is the ultimate street-smart guide to bone broth including everything you need to know about bone broth, the best homemade bone broth recipes, and what to look for when buying ready-to-drink bone broth products.
Growing up in China, I had very early access to bone broth, which nowadays is considered a superfood. My mom used to make bone broth for me whenever I was sick or had an injury, which apparently happened quite often. I wasn’t an athlete per se, but I was an extremely active kid. The kind who worries the parents all the time.
My mom’s homemade bone broth got me through a lot of physically tough times, including two arthroscopic knee surgeries and 11 stitches on my face from a fall in the mountains. But little did I know that a traditional food I took for granted almost my entire life would become a trendy food in the health and wellness industry.
As someone who knew firsthand the benefits of bone broth, I started digging into the subject more deeply, making my own bone broth at home, something that I eventually stopped. In this article, I will explain exactly why I stopped making bone broth at home. First, though, it’s important to understand what bone broth is because it’s not the normal stock you typically use in your cooking.
It’s cheaper to make it yourself. We all know that store bought bone broth is priced for kings and queens only. BUT with just a few ingredients, you can make a great quality broth for a fraction of the price you would pay at the store.
How to Make Bone Broth at Home
Now that you understand why you should take bone broth regularly, are you wondering how to make bone broth at home? Here are my favorite recipes for beef bone broth and chicken bone broth. I recommend using a slow cooker to make the cooking process almost completely hands-off.
What Is Bone Broth?
Bone broth is made with bones that have a small amount of meat attached to them. Along with a few vegetables, herbs, spices, and apple cider vinegar, the bones are covered in water and slowly simmered for 12-48 hours, depending on whether it’s beef bone broth or chicken bone broth. Beef bone broth needs more time to break down the nutrients in the bones, whereas the smaller chicken bones generally require less simmering time. The liquid result of long hours of simmering is bone broth.
Over the past few years, bone broth has gained a superfood status, having a nutrient profile that benefits all kinds of health ailments, from chronic digestive to autoimmune conditions. Not only can you find cookbooks and cleanses dedicated to bone broth, such as Dr. Kelly Ann’s Bone Broth Diet, but many restaurants also use bone broth in their recipes and serve it as a beverage on their drink menus.
How to Make Bone Broth – So Cheap, So Easy, So Loaded with Collagen
FAQ
Is it cheaper to make bone broth at home?
Is it better to make or buy bone broth?
What is the downside of bone broth?
Why is bone broth so expensive?
Is bone broth worth it?
It ends up being a lot more affordable than making my own broth or stock, or buying regular stock or broth. And FAR cheaper than buying already made bone broth – it’s like 3-4x’s more expensive than regular broth or stock. So in the end, it’s a win-win for our health and our budget!
What are the proven benefits of bone broth?
Bone broth provides collagen, an important protein for joint and tissue health, and it also has an anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effect.
Can you make bone broth at home?
It has its merits as an enriching food, filled with nutrients and flavor. The best way to reap its benefits is to prepare it yourself at home—you’ll save money by making your own and control the quality to boot. Plus, bone broth isn’t complicated to make, though it does take time.
Should I make bone broth from non-organic bones?
Of course, if you can, preferably organic, which is much more expensive. But I have read that making bone broth, even from non-organic bones, is far more beneficial than not at all, therefore outweighing the organic factor. Again, if you can, great.