How to make a deeply nourishing bone broth from scratch at home. Bone broth is packed full of amino acids, collagen, gelatin, and trace minerals that are fantastic for healing leaky gut, improving IBS and dysbiosis, and keeping your digestive tract healthy and strong. Bone broths can be incorporated into soups, stews, sauces, or you can even drink them on their own as a restorative.

I have a fairly sensitive gut. It’s a genetic trait in my family.

I’m intolerant to gluten, dairy, chicken, and oats, and leaky gut runs in my family, as my mum and twin sister have suffered with it for years.

To help give keep my sensitive gut healthy and strong, I make bone broth from scratch every week to sip on or use in soups to deliver a hit of tissue-repairing nutrients to my body, to help heal and keep my digestive system working in tip-top order.

Plus, it’s a great way to reduce food waste.

According to Dr. Mark Hyman, forty percent of our food is wasted. That’s a staggering amount of food being thrown away to rot in landfill, contributing to the methane emissions being released into the atmosphere.

So, if you’ve cooked up a big meal using beef, chicken, pork, fish, or some other form of meat, and have a heap of bones leftover, don’t throw them out! This is the perfect use for them.

What is Bone Broth?

Bone broth is a broth made from animal bones, in this case, from beef bones containing bone marrow. When making bone broth, you want to use some joints as well as meaty bones. You can use marrow bones, too (which is what I used for this batch), but it’s important to note that too much marrow can cause the broth to develop poor flavour, a greasy texture, and no gel.

Bone broth has been used for centuries, dating back as far as 2,500 years ago, where it was used in Chinese medicine to help support kidney and gut health.

According to Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN, ‘Not only are they [bone broth] both flavour- and nutrient-dense, they’re also easy to digest and able to boost internal healing thanks to key components like gelatin, which research shows can help support intestinal health and integrity.’

Bone broth is also a rich source of collagen in the diet. Rather than buying expensive collagen supplements, incorporating bone broth into your diet on a regular basis can be a wonderful collagen boost and it comes in a form the body recognises, and so will use.

Some supplements deliver nutrients in forms our bodies don’t recognise, but are cheap to manufacture. Here’s a guide on what to look for when choosing a supplement.

The difference between a broth, stock, and bone broth is:

• A broth is generally made from meat and simmered for a short period of time (around 4-6 hours).
• A stock is often made from meaty joints and bones and/or vegetables, and allowed to simmer for a moderate amount of time (usually 6-8 hours)
• A bone broth is made with a variety of meaty joints and bones, which are left to simmer for an extensive period of time (at least 8-12 hours, ideally 24 hours).

Before we get started in learning how to make this homemade bone broth, if you like what you’re seeing, subscribe to my email newsletter at the bottom of the page to keep up to date on the latest recipes, DIYs, gardening and health tips I share!

How to Make Homemade Bone Broth

Apple cider vinegar is added to this bone broth recipe in small amounts just to help break down the animal proteins and connective tissues. This, in turn, produces a broth that’s higher in protein and collagen.

When making a bone broth, try to purchase organic grass-fed beef bones. This ensures that the broth will be free of added hormones and antibiotics, and that the animal was well cared for.

A slow cooker or Crock-Pot can be used to make bone broth, but in this recipe I’ll be sharing how to make bone broth on the stove top.

This recipe will make around 1 litre of bone broth. If this is too much, simply cut the recipe in half.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 kilograms (4 pounds) beef bones with marrow (or can use organic chicken, pork, lamb etc.)
• 4 large carrots, chopped into 2-inch pieces
• 2 medium brown onions, quartered
• 4 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 whole heads garlic, halved
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 tbsp whole black peppercorns
• 2-3 sprigs fresh thyme (optional)
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary (optional)
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• Filtered water

To Make:

1. Place the bones in a large stockpot and cover with cold filtered water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes before draining and rinsing the bones with fresh water.
2. Next, preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F). Transfer the bones and vegetables (carrots, onions, garlic, celery) to a large oven dish. Try to avoid piling them on top of each other – use two oven dishes if necessary. Roast the ingredients for 30 minutes before gently tossing the bones and vegetables, and roasting for an additional 15-30 minutes more.
3. Place the roasted bones and vegetables into the crockpot along with the peppercorns, thyme, rosemary, and apple cider vinegar. Fill the pot with approximately 12 cups of filtered water, or until the bones are fully submerged. Cover the pot and turn the slow cooker to high to bring to a gentle simmer. 
4. Reduce the heat to low and, with the lid slightly ajar, occasionally skim any foam or excess fat that floats to the top. Simmer for at least 8-12 hours, ideally 24 hours. Add more water if needed to make sure bones and vegetables remain fully submerged.
5. Once the bones have simmered and the broth is ready, strain the bone broth through a fine mesh strainer lined with a nut milk bag or cheesecloth, or fine muslin cloth. Set aside the broth to cool and allow the bones to cool before discarding.
6. I like to pour the broth through a fat strainer to remove the layer of hard fat that can develop on top of the broth when stored in the refrigerator. This fat can be kept and used for cooking with later on.
7. Bone broth stores well in the refrigerator for approximately 5 days. If you make a large batch, I recommend freezing smaller batches in the freezer for up to 6 months (it reheats really well).

Please note that bone broth will typically gelatinise when refrigerated because of the collagen content. Don’t worry, that’s normal. It will liquify again once it’s been reheated.

This blog is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice. The use of information on this blog or materials linked from this blog is at the user’s own risk. The content of this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard, or delay in obtaining, medical advice for any medical condition they may have, and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Have you made bone broth before? What did you think? Share in the comments below.

Lots of love,

Vanessa