Bone broth packs a nutritious, delicious punch while reducing food waste.
From the trendiest restaurants in Manhattan, to the wellness ads on your social media feed, the glory of bone broth is making itself known.
Once the lot of home economists, bone broth is now on the radar for its savory flavor, versatility and health benefits. Simple to make, easy to digest and rich in nutrients, bone broth is a super food that many of us throw away!
With its easily digested nutrition, bone broth is great for anyone, but especially people recovering from illness, surgery, cancer treatment or childbirth. It is excellent food for seniors too. The best bone broths are homemade, cooked at a low temperature for at least eight hours, with the marrow of the bones exposed to the water as it cooks.
The bones from any type of meat can be used, each giving a different, distinctive flavor and health benefit. All bones can either be cooked fresh, with or without their meat, or recycled after eating a meaty meal. Chicken and turkey give a lighter broth, pork and lamb are medium hearty and beef is the most flavorful, as well as fatty. After preparing, refrigerate the broth so the fat can harden and be skimmed off.
So, bone broth is simple to make, but time consuming. The easiest method is covering the bones with water in a slow cooker and simmering overnight. Vegetables such as carrots, celery and onions can be added, as well as salt, pepper and garlic to taste. It is said that adding a spoonful of vinegar helps leech the calcium from the bones.
It can be taken as a hot drink, used as a base for soup or added to sauces or stews for added flavor and nutrition. Sipping hot bone broth throughout the day is excellent for fighting off a head cold when you feel the initial symptoms starting to set in.
On PEI, there are many farmers raising meat organically or without using growth hormones and antibiotics. Its best to use these kind of cuts when making broth for its recuperative health qualities.
Your local butcher can cut open the long bones of fowl to get access to the building block for blood production: the marrow. Or you can have fun hacking chicken or turkey legs, thighs and wings yourself with a sharp, heavy cleaver. If trying to do this at home, be careful of flying shards of bone. Hacking the bones open can feel a bit wild, but allowing the marrow access to the water, really boosts the health benefits of the broth. Plus, it’s a great way to vent holiday stress!
If you don’t have the time to make it yourself, Pembroke Farms at the Charlottetown Farmers Market sells frozen broth made lovingly from their organic lambs. The Bony Broth Company at the Summerside Farmers Market offers artisan broths made from grass-fed chicken. They recently announced they are now delivering to Charlottetown as well.
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