Making Super-Simple & Nutritious Chicken Stock- in 5 minutes!

As we enter the fall and winter months ahead, broth can be a wonderful addition to your diet. Broth is an immune-boosting and nutrient-rich food, abundant in amino acids and minerals. We make chicken broth nearly every week in our home, using the following method below. Once I figured out this super-simple way to make it, I can put it together (and clean up!) in less than 5-minutes total!

Every Wednesday we buy a roasted chicken at Whole Foods (on sale!) and once we’ve eaten the meat, we use the remaining bones for our stock.  Any meat and skin that remains on the bone is fine to add in, and will only add to the richness and flavor of the stock. You can also experiment with adding different vegetables (parsnips, beets, garlic, etc.) and herbs (rosemary, thyme, etc.) for different flavors. I personally keep mine pretty simple, because I use it to make other dishes.

What other uses are there for your stock?

• to cook grains in (such as brown rice or quinoa)
• to use as a base of a pureed soup (such as pureed butternut squash)
• to steam greens or veggies
• or simply to drink by the cupful- either plain or by warming up with fresh ginger, garlic, etc.

When you use stock to make other dishes, it adds a richness and creaminess that tastes similar to butter (to our dairy-free family). And even though my young kids don’t desire to drink it by the cupful at this point, it makes me feel good that I can still give them the benefits of it in my cooking.

For a great article on broths with lots of information and recipes for how to make other types, see here.

Enjoy!

Leftover-Roasted-Chicken Stock
by Debbie Steinbock

Ingredients:
1 or 2 carcasses leftover from roasted chicken (with whatever meat remains on the bones)
2 Tbsp Braggs apple cider vinegar, raw and unfiltered (optional)
1 onion, peeled and quartered
2 carrots, washed and roughly chopped
2 pieces celery, washed and roughly chopped
Handful or two of fresh parsley
1 zucchini, washed and roughly chopped (optional)
Filtered water
Sea salt, to taste

Method:

1. In a large stockpot, add the leftover carcass from your roasted chicken.
2. If using apple cider vinegar, add the 2 Tbsp of it to the pot and just enough filtered water to cover the chicken carcass. Let it sit for 20-30 minutes. The acidity will help to pull the minerals from the bones to make them more bio-available. Please note that the vinegar does change the flavor a bit (according to my kids :).
3. Add all the remaining vegetables and herbs and then enough filtered water to reach 1-2” from the top of the pot.
4. Bring to a boil, and then set to low and allow to simmer (covered) for 4-8 hours.
5. Strain everything from the broth and add sea salt to taste.
6. We then transfer the broth to mason jars and use for about 5 days for various uses—to cook grains in (such as brown rice or quinoa); to use as a base of a pureed soup (such as butternut squash); to steam greens or veggies; or to drink by the cupful!
7. Once cooled, broth can also be transferred to plastic containers, and frozen for about 3-4 months.