Bone Broth goodness

The nutritional value of bone broth has been long known by our grandmothers and their grandmothers.  In this age of time poor folk it seems to have been totally forgotten.  Instead, people reach for a stock cube or a carton of 'stock' off the supermarket shelves.  They pale in comparison as a nutritional and healthy meal option. They may add flavour, due to their MSG or yeast extract content,  to a risotto or a soup but that is about all.

For real nutritional value nothing beats a home made broth.  The other day I took you through the steps to make a chicken stock/broth.

Today I have a beef bone broth for you.  This is a medium level broth, when it comes to time and energy.  When I was studying my chef subjects at college we learnt how to make the best broth ever!  It is time consuming but well worth the effort.  It required 5 cuts of bone/meat, several hours of roasting and then simmering and ending with purifying the stock with egg whites.
If I was making bulk broth in a commercial kitchen I would do that but as I am not and you are unlikely to be, this is my offering:

Ingredients:
1kg beef bones, I used neck bones this time but you can use osso bucco but it is quite fatty.
12 litres of water
1 onion peeled and cut in half
10-12 peppercorns
2 stalks of celery (I would put more veg if not in P2)

Method:

Ask your butcher to cut them to small pieces.  This helps all the yummy marrow and gelatins to come out.

As with the chicken stock, pop your bones and veg into a pot or slow cooker and cover with water.  I added about 12litres to 1kg of bones.

Simmer, for a loooooooooong time.  I did 15 hrs and it was divine!   Let it cool and then remove bones. They should look like they have had the life sucked out of them!

Remove the fat from the top.   This stock won't be as clear as chicken stock and that is ok.  If it bothers you, warm and put some egg white in to clarify.

I got five containers of stock and lunch out of my lot.   I have to say this was the best bone broth I have made in ages!

I use it as a base for soups, stews or 

just to have a cup of in the afternoon to warm up.

Asian meatball soup

I love my soups.  Especially in winter. Something so comforting by a bowl of hot soup.  Although I have tended to gravitate towards creamier soups I have found since doing the protocol I am loving clear soups more and more.
This one was very easy and used my home made stock.   You can use beef or chicken stock really and whatever allowed or free veg you like.

Ingredients:

1-2c of lean stock  

100gr lean mince 

1/2tsp chilli 

pinch seaweed salt 

1/2tsp oregano

1/2tsp cumin

1/2tsp ground coriander

1/2tsp dried ginger

1c veg of choice (mine had zucchini and spinach)

Method:

Bring stock to simmer and add 1 c of veg of your choice plus any free veg you want.  Season with chilli, seaweed salt and ginger.    Mix mince with other spices and form into small balls and drop into stock.  Heat until meatballs are cooked through and veg are tender.

Chicken Stock

There are so many reasons to make your own stock.  For me the main one is an intolerance to yeast extract.  Most foods that say MSG free will be loaded with yeast extract and it does the same job as MSG to enhance flavour.  You can buy stock that is free from both but it is very expensive and still doesn't taste as good as home made.

It is not hard to make and if you have a slow cooker that makes it even easier.

Ingredients:

1 x chicken (use good quality, free range or organic as any other will have hormones and loads of fat)

1 x onion peeled and chopped in half

10 peppercorns (or a good grind of pepper)

1/2 tsp of himalayan salt

2 bay leaves

(when not doing protocol I would include celery and carrot)

Method:

Cut any large chunks of fatty skin off chicken.  I find most are around the neck area.  Put enough water in pot to just cover the chicken.   Allow to simmer for around 8hrs in a slow cooker or if on stove top it will only take around 2 hrs.   

Be careful not to let it boil as this will make a cloudy stock.   

I usually wait until it has decreased by about 1-2inches in volume.

After it has finished cooking, remove all the chicken and veg and put aside, allow the stock to cool overnight. This brings the fat to the top and lets a sediment of small chicken to lay at the bottom.

Very carefully with a flat spoon skim the fat off the top.  In the photo below you can see on the side of the dish were the liquid has reduced.  

Once you have as much fat removed as possible fold a few sheets of paper towel and lay on top.  This helps get some more of the fat off.

Your stock should still have the sediment at the bottom and a minimum of fat floating on top by this stage.  Take care not to stir it up or you will have to wait for the sediment to settle again.

With a soup ladle carefully ladle the stock into containers or another pot

You should have lovely clear stock.  There will be some bits in there but this doesn't affect flavour at all.  Even if it has boiled and clouded up it will still be tasty!

Remove all flesh from the chicken and chop into smaller pieces.  I portion it up into just under 100gr servings and put into each container with the stock.  You can also just portion up and freeze for salads or soups later if you like.   From a small chicken this time I got 500gr of meat.

Be sure to freeze straight away and eat within 2mths or you can make up batches of soup and freeze for ease.  

I will do a bone broth next which is just as easy and tasty!!