My goodness do I love broth! I love how cozy a mug full of broth on a chilly morning feels in my tummy. I love how a pot of broth smells while simmering on the stove top all day. 

It reminds me of my mom and nana and our house growing up.

I love how no matter what, it feels like a hug. I love how it warms me up from the inside. I love how it nourishes my body as well as my soul.

Isn’t it interesting how our body can know something is good for them, even when the logic isn’t there to make sense of it for us?

My mind did not know until much later in my life how healing broth is. And yet when I was young, something in me just knew that it was so wonderful for me way back then.

I didn’t have anything more to go off of except the feeling in my gut and the cozy feeling in my body. Body wisdom at its finest!

When we simmer broth on the stove top for hours, the heat allows for the releasing of the minerals found inside the veggies and the bones. The minerals leech out of the veggies and bones and into the liquid that will eventually become your broth.

MINERALS LIKE MAGNESIUM, POTASSIUM, SODIUM (AND CALCIUM, PHOSPHOROUS AND COLLAGEN FROM THE BONES!) ARE ABUNDANT IN BROTH

What a delicious way to increase your mineral content and bring powerful flavor to your soups and stews!

Broths / stocks are a wonderful way to use the whole animal, rather than just eating the muscle meats. It's an homage to our ancestors who knew the importance of the WHOLE animal -- the bone the cartilage, the marrow -- while also receiving the mineral benefits as well!

When making a broth, you want to add an acidic wine or vinegar during the cooking process to help draw out the minerals, mainly calcium, magnesium and potassium and into the liquidy broth. 

Pro tips:

• A few of these recipes call for kombu, a greenish/brownish seaweed. This is soo powerful for packing in minerals like iodine and iron. Plus it adds depth and flavor to your dish. Look for kombu in the Asian section of your grocery store. I like this brand here.

• Leave the peels on your onions. There are minerals in the peels that you don’t want to miss out on.

Nourishing Broth Recipes

CHICKEN BONE BROTH

• 4 quarts filtered water

• 2-4 lbs chicken bones (necks, backs, breastbones, wings)

• 3-5 chicken feet (optional, but absolutely amazing)

• 1 onion, coarsely chopped

• 3 carrots, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 3 stalks of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 4 whole garlic cloves, halved

• 2 TBS apple cider vinegar

• 1 bunch of parsley

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients in a large pot or Dutch oven.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 4-6 hours.

Strain out the veggies and bones and discard.

Store in a glass jar or container and refrigerate.

The finished product will get gelatinous and jiggly after it has been refrigerated. This is a good thing! This is all the yummy cartilage and minerals from the bones.

Reheat and enjoy in a mug first thing in the morning in place of your morning cup of coffee, add it to your soups for a deeper flavor, or freeze it into ice trays and drop a broth cube into your soups as needed.

BEEF BONE BROTH

• 4-5 quarts cold filtered water

• 2-3 pounds beef bones (I like a combination of marrow bones, meaty ribs or neck bones, and knuckle bones from grass-fed organic cows

• 4 carrots, chopped into one inch pieces

• 2 onions, coarsely chopped

• 1 bunch of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 4 cloves of garlic, halved

• 1 strip of kombu

• 10 black peppercorns

• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

• several sprigs of fresh thyme tied together with twine
• 1 bunch parsely

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Place your knucklebones and marrow bones in a large pot with the vinegar and cover with water. Let this stand for 1 hour. 

In the meantime, place any meaty bones you are using (like ribs) on a baking sheet and roast until the bones are browned, about 30-35 minutes. Then add these meaty bones to the pot. Now add the vegetables to the pot.

Bring to a boil, and then decrease the heat to a simmer.

Skim off any gunk or scum that floats to the top.

Simmer the broth for a minimum of 8 hours.

Add more water if you need to as the broth simmers.

Just before finishing, add the parsley and simmer another 10-ish minutes.

Remove the bones and strain the veggies with a slotted spoon.

You may wish to remove the congealed fat that rises to the top after cooling.

Store in a glass container or jar and refrigerate.

Sip on its own in a mug, or add as a base to your soups and stews.

MINERAL BROTH

• 4 quarts filtered water

• 5-6 red potatoes, quartered

• 1 sweet potato, quartered

• 3 stalks of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 6 carrots, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 2 yellow onions, cut into thirds

• 5 whole garlic cloves, and halved

• 2 strips of kombu

• 1 bunch parsley

• 10 black peppercorns

Directions:

Rinse your veggies.

Combine all the ingredients in a large pot or Dutch oven.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for at least 2 hours.

Strain out the veggies and discard.

Store in a glass jar or container and refrigerate.

Enjoy on it’s own in a mug in place of tea or coffee, or use it for your base in other soup recipes.

ELECTROLYTE BROTH

• 3 quarts of filtered water

• 6 russet potatoes, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 3 stalks of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 3 carrots, and chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 1 parsnip, and chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 3 whole garlic cloves, and halved

• 1 bunch of parsley

• 1 strip of kombu

• 5 1-inch pieces of ginger

• Juice from 1 lemon (optional)

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a large pot or Dutch oven.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 1-2 hours.

Strain out the veggies and discard.

Add in the lemon juice before serving.

Store in a glass jar or container and refrigerate.

Enjoy on it’s own in a mug in place of tea or coffee, or use it for your base in other soup recipes.

BASIC VEGGIE BROTH

• 4 quarts filtered water

• 1 onion, unpeeled, chopped into thirds

• 5 carrots, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 1 sweet potato, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 5 stalks of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces

• 2 inches of ginger, brown skin removed

• 3 cloves of garlic, unpeeled and halved

• 1 bunch of parsley

• 12-15 black peppercorns

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a large pot or Dutch oven.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for a minimum of 2 hours.

Strain out the veggies and discard.

Add in the lemon juice before serving.

Store in a glass jar or container and refrigerate.

Enjoy on it’s own in a mug in place of tea or coffee, or use it for your base in other soup recipes.

And there you have it! My favorite broth recipes of all time in the history of ever!

Broths are appropriate any time of the year, although I think we can all agree that during colder weather, or when the seasons change — those are the most wonderful times to enjoy broth.

I personally love to sip a warm mug of broth in the morning before breakfast. Sometimes I don't always have time to eat my breakfast right after waking, so a mugful of broth helps to nourish me and maintain stable blood sugar before I can sit down to my hearty breakfast.

Also -- I realize that it's not always feasible to make your own broth from scratch. When I'm in a pinch or simply don't have time to make broth, I love this one from Perfect Supplements -- its a great option to add to hot water when you need some broth! I like mine with a scoop of ghee, a healthy pinch of salt, and a pinch of dried herbs for extra flavor.

Bonus tip:

Whichever recipe you decide on, I encourage you to infuse your broth with love and healing intention. As you chop your veggies, think loving thoughts. Give thanks to the veggies and the animals who’s bones you are using for giving their lives so you may be nourished. Enjoy the process of chopping, slicing, dicing, stirring, creating. With great intention comes great reward. You will be amazed at the level of healing you receive from these foods when you give a bit of gratitude to the process.

I want to hear from you! What are your favorite broth recipes? How does broth make you feel? Did I leave anything out? Tell me in the comments!

Enjoy these recipes and enjoy making delicious, healing, soul-hugging broth!

xoxo,

Emily 😊