Making Bone Broths aka Stocks ~ Beef and Chicken

Bone broths are so so so so good for you.  Homemade stock, especially, can be nourishing.  This is because you can let is keep going.  The longer it simmers, the more goodness can leach out from the bones into the water.  

This goodness is why your mother said to eat chicken soup when you are sick!  All of the minerals and electrolytes that are stored in the bones become part of the liquid.  And in this form, it is highly bioavailable (i.e. you can metabolize, or use, most of it-- it is presented to your body in an easily recognizable and usable form).  If you use bones with connective tissue, you also end up with minerals that will heal your connective tissues.  It has been said that like heals like.  Therefore, if you have joint pain, making stock with animal joints can help heal yours (glucosamine, anyone?).  If you have eyesight that could us improving, make stock with fish or chicken eyes/ heads.  You get the point.  

You should always make stock with bones from the healthiest animals around.  They should be grass-fed and as high of a quality as you can source.  As with all meats, smaller animals with shorter lives have less of a chance to accumulate toxins, so if you aren't sure of your bone source for beef, you can always make chicken or fish stock.  If you have high enough quality of meat, and use enough connective tissues and let it boil long enough, your stock may even become gelled in the refrigerator.  This gelatin really helps heal the insides.

In chef speak, any dish is made tastier when started with a good stock.  This is the base for all the flavor of the dish.

Beef Broth

Using a recipe from the internet is a good place to start for beef broth.  I just used this recipe and got it to gel.  Another recipe uses a few peppercorns.  I got the bones from our local meat club CSA Marin Sun Farms. I used the gelatinous beef bones. I am making another batch right now with the meaty bones, and also bought marrow bones to try.  

1. Fill a stock pot with filtered water and the frozen bones, and bring it to a boil.
2. Skim off any foam.
3. Lower to a low simmer, and leave uncovered for 3 days.
4. Add water as needed.
5. Strain and store.  We like to use canning jars and put the lids on while hot so they sort of "can" themselves.  Many recommend to use stock within a week, but we feel like this gives us a bit more time with it.  We store it refrigerated and use it as often as possible-- often in place of water in cooking or just to drink as a beverage with meals.

Chicken Stock

Using heads and feet make a thicker stock.  We usually use a carcass from a roasted chicken, and add a third of a pound of chicken heads, a third of a pound of chicken feet, and a few chicken necks.  We get all of our meat from our local meat club CSA Marin Sun Farms.  Their chickens are pastured on the heels of the cows, which is as good as it gets for chickens.

1. Fill a stock pot with filtered water, the bones, a quartered onion with its peel, 3 roughly chopped carrots, the greens and middles of a head of celery, and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.
2. Bring it to a boil.
3. Skim off any foam.
4. Lower to a low simmer, and simmer, covered, for 12 to 24 hours.
5. Strain and store.  We like to use canning jars and put the lids on while hot so they sort of "can" themselves.  Many recommend to use stock within a week, but we feel like this gives us a bit more time with it.  We store it refrigerated and use it as often as possible-- often in place of water in cooking or just to drink as a beverage with meals.

Pin It