Bone Broth has become very trendy in recent months. The health benefits of this simple dish our Grandmothers have been making for years are hard to ignore. Who doesn’t want better gut health and great skin? There are so many reasons to drink more broth but the main one we like is that it tastes good. It is delicious on its own, is a great base for soups, and can be added to gravy’s and sauces easily. Last week we hosted an Alberta Mamas Turkey Dinner with Alberta Turkey (see more on that post and what we made here) and as delicious the whole meal was I was mostly excited for the bones of the turkey so I could make bone broth the next day.

Broth is simple but takes time. It is a great way to use up vegetables sitting in the fridge that may be getting older or are bruised. I will often have a bag of scraps in the freezer that I add to throughout the month and when the bag is full or I cook a turkey I am set and ready.

Bone Broth Recipe

You will need:

• Turkey bones left over from your turkey meal.
• Carrots, onions, celery or any other root vegetable you have on hand
• Garlic
• Herbs (for this one we used leftover rosemary and thyme from our dinner the night before)
• Spices to taste (we used cumin, star anise, salt and pepper but use what you have in the pantry)

Step 1

Roast the bones. This step is often skipped but it adds depth to the flavour as well as colour for the broth. Simply put the bones on a cookie sheet and into the oven on a high broil until they brown up. Time will depend on your oven. You are just looking for them to brown up and any leftover meat and skin to crisp up.

Step 2

While the bones are roasting chop veggies. You want them to stay fairly large. Keep all the skins on because they hold a ton of extra nutrients. Plus it means less prep work for you if you don’t have to peel things!

Step 3

Put all the ingredients into a large pot. The more bones and the bigger the batch of stock you want to make the larger the pot you will need. Don’t stress about size and measuring things. As the water boils and the flavours concentrate you can always pull some out, add more water, and keep boiling.

Step 4

Add water. You want just enough to cover the bones.

Step 5

Bring to a boil on high and then let it simmer. Time simmering will depend on size of pot and how many bones are in the pot. Look for a cloudy broth as seen in the picture below. When it changes colour from clear to cloudy it is done. Of course the longer you simmer the more flavourful it is so feel free to let it go for a few hours.

Step 6

Ladle the soup into a colander with a bowl beneath it as seen in the picture  below. This will catch all the bits and pieces you don’t want and leave you with a pure broth below.

Step 7

After letting the broth cool a bit pour it into the containers you want for storage. Broth keeps in the fridge for 4-5 days and can be frozen for up to a year so I usually put a few mason jars into the fridge and store the rest in bags to go in the freezer. Quick hack: If you have no one to hold the bags for you place them in a large measuring cup (shown below). It will hold the bag and leave room to close it easily after filling.

 

And that’s it! We recommend that you use less salt than you think you may want especially if you are planning on making soup with the bone broth later. It is always easier to add more later!

 

• Deanne Ferguson is the owner of Box Social Event Planning. When she is not planning fun, family, friendly events she is finding the yummiest food for the Edmonton Home and Garden Show Food Stage. She loves her #cocktailsMonday dates with her husband and chasing around her two boys. You can find her at @DeanneFerguson on Instagram and @BoxSocialYEG on Twitter.