Homemade beef bone broth is a nutritious staple loaded with amino acids and collagen for bone and skin health. Whether sipped like tea or used in cooking, its versatility makes it a kitchen essential. In this recipe, I'll guide you through making an easy bone broth in a Crockpot.
Jump to:
- What's the Difference Between Beef Broth and Beef Stock?
- What You Need
- What's a Crockpot?
- How to Make Bone Broth in a Slow Cooker
- How to Make Bone Broth on the Stove
- How to Add Meat to the Pot
- How to Store Bone Broth
- Can You Freeze Bone Broth?
- What Is The Jelly in Bone Broth Made Of?
- Health Benefits of Bone Broth
- Summary
- "📖 Recipe"
What's the Difference Between Beef Broth and Beef Stock?
The difference between a broth and a stock is the cooking time. A broth is cooked for up to 48 hours, and stock is cooked for three hours.
Sometimes the chefs add tomato paste and whole tomatoes to their stock, and there are hundreds of variations.
If you intend to use bone broth as the liquid component in a rice dish, it would be an excellent choice.
What You Need
- 2-3 pounds of beef, chicken, or pork bones
- Aromatic vegetables (onions, garlic, carrots, celery)
- Herbs and spices (bay leaves, peppercorns, parsley, thyme)
- Water
- olive oil
- apple cider vinegar
What's a Crockpot?
A slow cooker, Crockpot, is an electric appliance that cooks at a very low voltage and a low temperature.
I can prep all of my ingredients, put them in the pot, and let them cook at a steady temperature overnight without worrying about it.
How to Make Bone Broth in a Slow Cooker
Step 1) Roast the Bones
Rinse the bones and pat dry. Place the bones in a roasting pan and roast at 450 degrees F for 45 minutes to one hour, tossing after 30 minutes.
Step 2) Sauté the Aromatics (optional)
Although this is an optional step, it makes a big difference in the taste of your broth! If you're short on time, you can skip it.
While the bones roast, sauté chopped carrots and onions in a skillet until well browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to your slow cooker, then deglaze the skillet with water, scraping up any browned bits with a wire whisk. Pour it into the pot for added flavor.
Step 3) Cook the Broth
Add the roasted bones and all other ingredients to the sautéed veggies in your slow cooker. Fill the pot with water, ensuring all ingredients are covered, leaving a 2-inch gap at the top to prevent overflow.
Set the slow cooker to high, cover, and cook for one hour. Open the lid and skim any foam (impurities from the meat) with a large spoon. Re-cover and reduce the heat to low. Allow it to cook for 3 to 12 hours.
Step 4) Let it Rest
Turn off the heat and uncover the pot. Let the pot sit uncovered for at least one hour at room temperature. Discard the bones and vegetables. I usually eat the carrots; I like to eat them while I finish up the stock. Strain the soup into a large colander over a clean pot or chinois (a fine mesh cone-shaped strainer).
TIP: Keep the Crockpot covered while the broth is cooking. Every time you open the lid, you allow steam to escape and there is a tremendous drop in temperature. According to Crockpot, it takes 30 minutes for the pot's contents to come back to temperature.
Step 3) Skim the Fat
How to Make Bone Broth on the Stove
If you prefer to make your stock on the stovetop, simply follow the directions provided in this recipe.
Place all the ingredients in a stockpot over high heat and bring them to a boil. Allow it to boil for 10 minutes, then skim off any foam that rises to the top.
Lower the heat to the lowest setting on your stove and let it simmer, covered, for 3-12 hours.
How to Add Meat to the Pot
To enhance your meal while the stock is cooking, consider adding meat to the pot.
Add a piece of chuck steak to the crockpot and let it cook for 3 hours, then remove them.
Whole Foods Market has grass-fed chuck steak behind the counter, and its not expensive. For added flavor, sear the meat and season with sea salt before adding it to the crockpot with the bones.
You can also include a few more peeled carrots and celery stalks to the pot.
How to Store Bone Broth
After cooling, portion the broth into 12-ounce plastic containers, cover, and refrigerate to have broth for the next few days.
Or, you can also pour the broth back into the pot, cover it, and chill in the refrigerator overnight. This is easier if you had a long day.
Then, skim off the fat before distributing it into containers. As the broth chills, the fat separates and rises to the top, making it easy to skim off.
Before consuming, I heat the broth in a small saucepan for about three minutes.
Refrigerate the broth for 3-4 days in airtight containers or freeze it in serving-sized containers for longer storage.
Can You Freeze Bone Broth?
I have a theory that everything that goes into the freezer comes out worse, except the bone broth!
I freeze a few quarts at a time and then have broth for the month.
Bone broth can be frozen for up to six months in several ways.
- You can freeze the broth in 8 or 16-ounce individual freezer containers.
- You can freeze the stock in ice cube trays and then transfer the cubes to zip-top bags. Then, you can pull out the cubes as you need them.
What Is The Jelly in Bone Broth Made Of?
Gelatin is what turns bone broth into a gel-like consistency when cooled. Gelatin is derived from the collagen found in bones, connective tissues, and cartilage.
As the broth cools, the gelatin congeals, giving the broth a thicker texture. This gel-like consistency is a sign of a well-made bone broth. It indicates the presence of collagen-rich gelatin, which offers numerous health benefits.
Health Benefits of Bone Broth
As per an article on Medical News Today titled "The Health Benefits of Bone Broth," In bone broth, extracting connective tissue provides natural compounds from cartilage. Bones contain collagen, which turns into gelatin during cooking and supplies essential amino acids.
However, the nutritional composition varies based on the types of bones and tissues utilized. Bone broth is esteemed for its gelatin content, which potentially enhances joint health. Certain amino acids, such as glutamine, might assist digestion, particularly in conditions like leaky gut.
Bone broth could aid in weight loss owing to its high protein content.
Summary
This beef bone broth recipe provides a warm and nourishing beverage.
Simmering bones, vegetables, herbs, and spices, bone broth can be made on the stovetop or in a slow cooker. You can cook it from 3 to 48 hours on very low heat.
Homemade bone broth may offer several health benefits, including supporting joint health, promoting gut health, skin health, and improved digestion. These benefits are attributed to its rich nutrient content, including collagen, gelatin, amino acids, and minerals.
As noted by Medical News, determining the precise nutrient composition of a specific batch of bone broth is challenging because it heavily relies on the type and amount of bones and tissues used in its preparation. Therefore, we recommend buying pasture raised grass-fed meat and bones.
For more collagen soup recipes, try my Chicken Feet Soup and Bone Broth or Old-fashioned Chicken Soup.
If you're not going to consume all the bone broth, freeze it in containers for another use. I don't like freezing a lot of things, but bone broth can easily be defrosted without a loss of taste.
Yes, I often add a piece of chuck steak or rib bones to the pot while the broth is cooking. You can let the meat cook for 3 hours or so in the broth and then pull it out and eat it.
Apple cider vinegar is added to bone broth to help extract minerals and nutrients from the bones. Additionally, it aids in breaking down collagen and connective tissues, releasing more gelatin into the broth.
"📖 Recipe"
Homemade Beef Bone Broth
Equipment
- Roasting Pan
- Knife
- Vegetable peeler
- 12" skillet
- Slow cooker or Stockpot
- Large serving spoon
- Tongs
- Strainer
Ingredients
- 3 pounds beef bones preferably from pasture-raised beef
- 1 gallon filtered water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced into chunks
- 2 medium onions peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 ribs celery roughly chopped or a handful of celery leaves
- 1 garlic clove peeled and chopped
- 2 parsley sprigs
- 3 fresh thyme sprigs
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon peppercorns
- 2 tablespoon organic apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F with rack set in the center of the oven.
- Scatter bones in a large shallow roasting pan. Place pan in the oven and roast for one hour.
- While bones are roasting, heat olive oil in a large skillet, add carrots, celery, and onions, and cook over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, tossing occasionally until well-browned. Remove from pan and place veggies in the crockpot.
- Add the remaining ingredients and bones from the pan into the crockpot and fill the pot with water leaving 2” on the top.
- Cook on the "high" setting for one hour. If any foam has risen to the top, skim it off with a large serving spoon. Replace the cover and reduce the heat to "low," allowing it to simmer for at least three hours and up to 48 hours.
- Uncover and stir the pot. Let it cool for at least one hour.
- Strain with a colander or fine-mesh strainer. Discard all solids.
- Place soup in covered containers or mason jars. Skim the fat from the top of the soup before using it.
- Season broth with salt and enjoy.
Notes
The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.