Chicken Broth

Homemade Chicken Broth

(Whole 30 Compliant)

You will need a crockpot for this recipe.  It’s great staple to make on a lazy winter Sunday, or during a busy week, as it can cook overnight.  “Set it and forget it”.  It yields about 4 quarts of broth, which is great to have on hand for last minute needs and means that you only have to make a big batch about once a month.  You can store it in the freezer in quart containers or ice cube trays.  Having the broth always on hand in the freezer is just as convenient as canned soup, but better.  You can make a weeknight soup anytime in minutes.   After you try it, I promise, it will be hard to go back to store bought broth.  The flavor and nutritional value of this broth far exceeds any store brand.  Give it a try!

Ingredients:

1 whole 2-3 lb. free range/organic chicken, insides included (remove the wings and neck and cut into smaller pieces for easier handling)

4 quarts filtered water (or enough to cover the chicken and fill to the top of the crock pot)

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 large red or yellow onion, roughly chopped

2 carrots, roughly chopped (no need to peel if organic)

3 celery stalks, roughly chopped

1 medium sized bunch of parsley

2 strips Kombu (seaweed)

1 tablespoon dulse flakes

2 tablespoons dried rosemary

2 bay leaves (optional)

Directions:

Place chicken, water, vinegar and all vegetables (except the parsley) into the crockpot and let stand for 1 hour.

Put a lid on the crockpot and bring to a boil (or put to high setting for 1 hour).

Reduce to low setting, and let simmer for 6-8 hours. *the longer it cooks the more flavorful it gets, so you can certainly cook it longer

Add parsley when you have 1 hour left.

Remove the cooked pieces of chicken to use for other recipes, or freeze for later use.

Strain the broth and discard all the vegetables and herbs.

Ladle the broth into quart jars (leaving at least an inch at the top for freezing) or ice cube trays.

Let it come to room temperature and place into the fridge.  Once the broth is cool, it’s okay to transfer to the freezer.

Now you have it on hand to make a quick weeknight chicken soup.

Here’s How:

Just saute up 1 onion, 2 cloves garlic, 2 carrots and 1 celery stalk until tender. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and herbs de provence to taste.  Add the chicken broth and you are good to go.  For the chicken, you can saute up a few breasts when you cook the veggies, or you can buy an already cooked breast to chop up…  Or if you’re like me, you have some in the freezer leftover from a previous dinner and you chop that up to go in the broth. Once it’s up to a boil, you can serve…just like canned soup….but better!