Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Nourishing Bone Broth


Bone broth! Have you heard of it? Most likely you have considering it has become more and more popular with Paleo diet being so trendy these days. I do not consider myself paleo, I don't really like labels, but I do love bone broth! It is the first "meat" I chose to give my almost 3 year old daughter. For those of you who are not familiar, bone broth is broth made from from bones simmered in water for 24 plus hours. It is very rich in protein, minerals, gelatin, glycine, proline, and much more. It is wonderful for your gut and digestion especially. It is also great for the skin because of the collagen you are getting from the bones. How do you make this you say? There are so many variations, but this is a good guideline to use:

Carissa's Bone broth-

  • Grass-fed organic (preferably local) marrow bones from lamb, deer or cow
  • Vegetable scraps (This can be literally anything. Save the odds and ends of vegetables that you would normally throw away like celery ends, potato skins, whatever. You can save them in a bag in the freezer so that you can just pop it in the crock pot when you are ready to make your broth.)
  • Apple cider vinegar or coconut vinegar (you need 2-4 Tb. This ingredient is mandatory. It is what acts as a solvent and pulls out the calcium and minerals from the bones.)
  • Medicinal mushrooms (such as chaga, reishi, shiitake, etc)
  • Medicinal herbs (astragalus, nettles, ashwagandha, thyme, rosemary, etc)
  • Garlic & onions
  • Bay leaves
  • Himalayan salt & peppercorns 
  • Dried seaweed (whatever you have on hand like wakame, kelp, sea asparagus, kombu, etc)
  • Egg shells (This will add additional calcium and minerals to your broth)
  • Crustacean shells (very optional. Only if desired for extra trace minerals. Adds bitter flavor so only add a little.)
  • Purified water
Combine everything in a crockpot. Add just enough water to cover the bones. Cook on low heat for 24-72 hours. Strain and store in refrigerator. It is important to refrigerate quickly after done cooking so that your broth does not start growing bacteria. Whatever you are not going to use within a couple days, store in freezer.

What do you like to add to your bone broth?


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