How to Make Bone Broth
An easy, step-by-step guide to making chicken bone broth! Simple ingredients and fool-proof methods yield a beautiful broth perfect for soups, sauces, and more!
Servings 8 (Cups)
Ingredients
- Bones and carcass of 1 chicken (we suggest starting with a whole roasted chicken)
- 12 cups filtered water
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 generous pinch each sea salt and black pepper (plus more to taste)
- Rosemary/herbs (leftover from roasting chicken // optional)
- 1 sliced lemon (leftover from roasting chicken // optional)
Instructions
- To a large pot or Dutch oven, add the bones leftover from a whole roasted chicken (including legs and wings that may have been on the serving platter), or the bones from 1 chicken purchased from a butcher. (Note: This can also be done in a Crock-Pot or Instant Pot.)We also like adding the lemon wedges and rosemary that were cooked with our whole roasted chicken (optional).
- Top with filtered water until generously covered (about 12 cups / 2880 ml). This should reduce down by about 1/3 or 1/2, leaving you with 6-8 cups of bone broth.
- Next, add in a bit of salt and pepper to season the broth (you can add more later to taste).
- Then add apple cider vinegar, which is added primarily because the acidity breaks down the collagen and makes it more abundant in the broth. You can also sub lemon juice, but we prefer apple cider vinegar.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for at least 10-12 hours, or until reduced by 1/3 to 1/2. The more it reduces, the more intense the flavor will become and the more collagen will be extracted. We find 12 hours to be about right.
- Strain and discard the bones. Either use immediately or store in glass jars and freeze up to 1-2 months or more. Just be sure to leave a couple inches at the top of the jar to allow for expansion in the freezer.Note: Bone broth typically gelatinizes when refrigerated because of the collagen content. But don't worry — that's normal. When reheated it liquifies once again, just like store-bought chicken broth.
Video
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated without optional ingredients.
Nutrition (1 of 8 servings)
Serving: 1 cup Calories: 53 Carbohydrates: 0.9 g Protein: 5.3 g Fat: 2.9 g Saturated Fat: 0.9 g Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.61 g Monounsaturated Fat: 1.32 g Trans Fat: 0.04 g Cholesterol: 2.63 mg Sodium: 342 mg Potassium: 208 mg Fiber: 0 g Sugar: 0.4 g