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In this How to Make Bone Broth and Avoid Rancid Fat post, I present a complete guide to cooking techniques (and health-safety issues) that other bone broth recipes don’t teach. With gut-nourishing amino acids, gelatin, and collagen, it’s important to keep bone broth healthy by avoiding rancid fat production. This recipe teaches you how to make the best, pure bone broth in your Instant Pot, slow-cooker or on the stove top — with lots of variations and tips!
Being an altogether comprehensive article on how to make bone broth, this recipe addresses many subtopics, including: meat stock, low histamine broth, vegetables in broth-making, how to make broth mineral-rich, the best bones for broth, where to get bones for broth, fish stock and more.
For healing the gut, restoring good general health, reducing inflammation, fighting viruses, and a host of other benefits, bone broth (and meat stock — we’ll talk more about this) are the most healthful, gentle tonics of all.
My background making bone broth
Our family owned a gut-healing cafe for about seven years where we made thousands of gallons of bone broth. Before that, we did the GAPS Introduction diet twice and the full GAPS Diet for over 6 years — the diet that first revealed bone broth to be unparalleled in its health benefits.
Doctors, especially cancer specialists, sent their patients to our cafe for bone broth and bone broth soups. We learned a lot in those years, and still implement the principles weekly in our home, where we continue a nourishing, gentle, intentional diet that includes meat stocks and bone broth.
May these guidelines and tips be helpful to you.
Surprising facts about bone broth:
- Bone broth is not high in minerals. Although most websites will tell you it is, and I thought so myself, too, at one time, it isn’t. See these studies: 1, 2, 3, 4. In short, when broths cook for an extended period of time, it is protein that increases in broth, not minerals.
- Store bought broth is not as healthy. Convenient, yes, but you’re not going to get the same flavor, sourcing (great, pasture-raised bones), quality control or nutrition from store bought cartons of broth. And homemade broth is not hard to make! In fact, I’m going to show you a super fast, easy recipe. It’s a “dump and cook” no-brainer-easy recipe! 🙂
- Bone broth has a rival: Meat Stock! I actually prefer meat stock to bone broth for mid-week cooking! Meat stock is what’s created in the first 2 to 3 hour simmer of the bones. It’s super high in gelatin, gentle for invalids, and … the flavor is better! Plus, meat stock is faster and easier to make. But — is meat stock just as nourishing, just as gut-healing? Bone broth is higher in collagen than meat stock, but both are very high in gelatin. Gelatin should not be underestimated (read more about gelatin’s benefits here). Its healing benefits are incredible. So yes, make bone broth too. But enjoy meat stock regularly, especially if it enables you to have it more often.
PRO TIP: You can combine your batches of meat stock and bone broth! When your meat stock AND bone broth batches are complete, pour them half and half into storage jars. You’ll have a collagen-rich meat stock/bone broth combo that has the best flavor and nutrition.
PRO TIP 2: To increase the mineral content of broth, try adding dried nettles! (Find organic nettles here.) For this purpose, let the nettles steep in your hot broth for 5 to 20 minutes, then strain them to serve.
Rancid bone broth is common
In our first years on the GAPS diet, we simply boiled our bones for hours and hours. We didn’t know that we were simmering fat, and creating a rancid product that 1) didn’t always taste good and 2) wasn’t healthy.
Actually, most recipes tell us to simply boil our bones for a long time — 24 to 48 hours, or 90 to 120 minutes in the Instant Pot. The recipe authors don’t know: the fat MUST be strained off the top after 2 to 3 hours, or the broth is no longer health food.
Why rancid fat is unhealthy
This recipe isn’t the place to go into all of the reasons rancid fat is unhealthy or how rancid fat is created, but I do want to share the basics briefly:
- Rancid fat destroys vitamins, which can lead to deficiencies (source).
- Ironically, the intestinal tract and flora health are two main areas that suffer when exposed to rancid fat (source).
- Rancid fat can cause toxic symptoms in humans, including a variety of symptoms that appear autoimmune in nature (source), again ironic for anyone trying to heal from autoimmune conditions … that we can make ourselves sicker with rancid bone broth.
Short story: We need to prevent fats from oxidizing to protect our health. Since heat and long-cooking can start the oxidative process, we need to be mindful about and practice conscientious cooking steps when making bone broth.
How to make Bone Broth and Meat Stock that avoid rancid fat
For the best, most nourishing bone broth, it’s important to harvest the bones’ broth at least two times:
- once after 2 to 3 hours for a very healing, high-fat broth called, Meat Stock
- once after 24 hours (this is your first harvest of bone broth) — or 90 to 120 minutes in the Instant Pot
- and again, optionally, after 48 to 72 hours (for a second harvest of bone broth from the same bones!) — or 90 more minutes in the Instant Pot
With this intention, each time you gather the broth from the bones, you simply add more water and sea salt, and keep going!
Two options
The first harvest of Meat Stock can simply be: Skim off all the fat, and keep the stock cooking. OR, harvest all the stock, add new water and salt for a fresh bone broth. This method is very economical, because for every set of bones, you get one batch of meat stock and one to two bone broths.
How to make bone broth and avoid rancid fat … You’ll need:
Ingredients:
3 lbs bones — chicken feet or bones and cartilage (preferably from a pastured chicken), beef bones (grass-fed), or other sustainably-sourced animal bones, joints preferred, or exposed marrow
Optional: 2 Tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar (not ideal for those with FODMAP or fructose sensitivities); you can also use whey
Filtered Water: about 1-1/2 gallons
1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons sea salt (adjust according to pot size and to taste)
Method:
1. Add bones to stock pot, slow cooker or Instant Pot.
2. Fill with filtered water.
3. Add optional apple cider vinegar and sea salt.
4. Once the water begins to simmer, cook for 2 to 3 hours. Harvest all the fat, or fatty broth, using a ladle (keep the fat for another use, delicious in cooking!). This 2 to 3 hour broth is actually Meat Stock. (In the actual recipe below, I discuss how to harvest all the broth or just the fat, your choice.)
5. If you harvest all of the broth, you’ll add new water, salt, and apple cider vinegar, and simmer on low at least 24 hours and up to 72 hours — or 90 minutes in the Instant Pot. (If using a pot on the stove, or a slow-cooker: within 30 minutes of the broth’s first boiling, scum will rise to the surface; skim this off.)
6. Strain and use.
See (printable) Recipe Card below.
NOTES
- The fat from the first 2 to 3 hour boil NEEDS to be consumed (or skimmed off and saved) after this time period has elapsed. If the fat continues to boil, it will become rancid.
- My favorite broths are made from 1) chicken feet or 2) beef marrow bones.
What bones make the best bone broth and meat stock
Indeed, some bones make more delicious broths than other bones.
Chicken feet yield a very gelatin-rich and flavorful broth — buttery and unbelievably sustaining in nature. The many joints in the feet are a key source of gelatin and collagen. The whole leftover carcass of a chicken also makes delicious, good broth or stock.
Beef marrow bones yield a rich 1 to 2 tablespoons of marrow for every bone used. The marrow makes a good breakfast with broth and poached eggs. Accordingly, the first harvest beef marrow meat stock is rich and delicious! Served with the marrow itself and soft poached eggs, it is one of life’s most hidden, culinary pleasures!
Where to buy bones for bone broth and meat stock
- Find a local pasture-raised chicken farmer. Many cities now have chicken farmers who care about sustainable farming.
- Ask a friend who raises chickens for eggs! When the chickens are done laying, they might be happy to part with their birds so you can make great broths and stocks.
- Look for a pasture-raised beef farmer. Marrow bones come from the femur bone, which is a big leg bone, inexpensive and plentiful for beef farmers. Joint bones are also a great thing to buy, and the farmer is happy to sell the whole animal!
- If you hunt or know someone who does, wild game bones make great bone broth and meat stock.
How much to pay for bone broth bones
Look for a price no higher than $3.99 a pound, but preferably cheaper!
If you get bones from a hunter or friend, you can get bones for free.
If you like fish stock, you can often get your fish monger to part with their bones for free!
How to make fish stock and shrimp stock (and avoid rancid fat)
So glad you asked! 🙂 Fish stocks are fabulous! My favorite is actually a seafood stock made from shrimp shells. But you can make a fish stock out of any fish bones! If you have a great fish monger/market in your town, and there’s not much demand (which there rarely is), you can likely get fish bones with fresh, raw meat still on them, for free.
The main thing to know about fish stocks is that they are always made like a meat stock, not a bone broth — so a short cook time, to avoid rancid fat.
Thirty minutes of stove top simmering is all, and fish stocks are best enjoyed the day they’re made. Shrimp stock is also good the next day.
Find How to Make Bonito Bone Broth here.
Ratio of ingredients
Regarding salt, start with half the amount you would use for a meat stock, and add more to taste, if needed, when the stock is done cooking.
That means: 2 to 3 pounds fish bones, 1 Tablespoon sea salt and 10 cups water for a large batch.
You can make a smaller batch if using shrimp shells (if you don’t have that much weight). Add a bit of fresh garlic and/or fresh ginger to the finished stock.
Further, you can steep fresh herbs in the finished hot stock — like fresh tarragon, mint or rosemary.
Find the best recommendations on which shrimp to buy here.
Fatty broth: Is it healthy?
Remember what Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, creator of the GAPS diet, says about the marrow, fat and fatty broths:
From the Gut and Psychology Syndrome,
Avoid lean meats; our physiology can only use meat fibers when they come with the fat, collagen and other substances that a proper piece of meat will provide. GAPS people need plenty of animal fats… (p. 132) and …the bone marrow provide[s] some of the best healing remedies for the gut lining and immune system; your patient needs to consume them with every meal. (p.145)
Cultivating a taste for, and truly appreciating, a good, rich, fatty broth is one of life’s ironies. You do it to heal your body, but you end up enjoying it. As long as the fat has a short cooking time and is well-sourced, it is nourishing.
Should you add vegetables to bone broth
Many customers ask me about adding vegetables to their bone broth.
I say no. Vegetables actually taint the flavor of bone broth, a lot in my opinion.
Any bone broth soup can be made with vegetables once it’s complete. However, do not add onions, carrots, celery or herbs to your initial pot of simmering bone broth.
Instead, enjoy the pure, rich flavor that comes from just the bones, fat, connective tissue and any small amount of meat that may still be on the bones; it is not something that needs or wants amending.
Why add vegetables to bone broth
However, if it’s very important to you to have a more mineral-rich broth, minerals do come from simmered vegetables, especially leafy greens. Personally, I’d rather enjoy cooked vegetables as a side dish with my meal, or steep nettles in my broth.
How to make a low histamine broth
The first 2 to 3 hour broth (or 30 minutes in the Instant Pot is even better [see notes on the IP below]) is low-histamine, for those of you needing that.
The bones must be very fresh, or frozen very fresh. Leftovers, accordingly, will not be low histamine unless you freeze them immediately and then defrost and consume them quickly.
Are slow cookers and Crock Pots safe?
Several years ago there was skepticism about the safety of modern slow cookers.
The ceramic was said by some to leach lead into food, and the FDA wording in their guidelines for safety is vague and not reassuring.
Testing vindicated the most popular brands.
If you like using a slow cooker, here‘s a helpful guide for consumers.
How to make Instant Pot bone broth — the easiest method!
Instant Pots are the best thing to happen to bone broth.
That being the case, I finally purchased mine a few years ago — and find it to be my most valuable cooking appliance.
IPs make broth much neater and faster:
- The first stage of soup (the 2 to 3 hour batch called Meat Stock) takes only 30 minutes to cook in the IP!
- The 24 to 72 hour crock pot/stove top batches take 90 minutes to 2 hours to yield the same nutrient-dense broth, in an Instant Pot.
How to Make Bone Broth and Avoid Rancid Fat recipe
How to Make Bone Broth (and How to Avoid Rancid Fat) — Instant Pot, Stove and slow-cooker
Equipment
- Instant Pot, slow cooker or stock pot
Ingredients
- 10 cups filtered water (You will need 20 cups water total if you choose to make two batches from the same bones.)
- 3 pounds bones : grass-fed and sustainably-raised
- 2 Tablespoons sea salt (You will need 4 Tablespoons sea salt total if you make two batches.)
Instructions
- First, to make short-cook Meat Stock: Place water in pot. Add bones and sea salt.*Crock Pot or Stove Top: Set timer so broth will simmer 2 to 2-½ hours; depending on how long it takes for slow cooker or pot to come to a simmer; set the time accordingly, about 3 to 3-½ hours.*Instant Pot: Place lid with rubber ring securely into place. Turn steam valve to closed position. Choose "Soup" setting of 30 minutes. When timer goes off, allow pressure to release naturally for 1 hour. Then place dish towel or hot pad over steam valve and open it carefully to release any remaining steam.
- Two options for harvesting fat and meat stock: Option 1, use a ladle or metal spoon to ladle all the fat off the top of meat stock. Save this fat for another use. Option 2, when meat stock and pot are cool enough to handle, pour the entire contents of pot (fat and stock) through a fine mesh sieve into storage jars, reserving the bones.
- You now have either a pot with stock (almost no fat) and bones. OR you have an empty pot. The first option will give you less overall stock and broth in the end, but all the nutrients will be concentrated into one bone broth. *The second option will give you two batches: one, a meat stock that's high in fat and gelatin, rich and flavorful. And two, a bone broth without fat but higher in protein and collagen. *Both variations are good and just a matter of preference. Most importantly, we aren't allowing the fat to have a long cooking time, during which time it becomes rancid and bad-tasting.
- Option 1 — The fat is now removed. Continue cooking the broth now, to extract the collagen and protein from the bones with the longer cooking time.*Crock Pot or Stove Top: Cook broth an additional 24-72 hours.*Instant Pot: Reseal lid. Turn steam valve to closed position. Choose "Manual" button, then "-" button to set time at 120 minutes. When timer goes off, allow pressure to release naturally for 1 hour minimum. Then place dish towel or hot pad over steam valve and open it carefully to release any remaining steam. Strain and store in fridge until ready to use.
- Option 2 — Return bones to pot. Add 2 Tablespoons additional sea salt and 10 cups additional filtered water.*Crock Pot or Stove Top: Cook broth an additional 24-72 hours.*Instant Pot: Reseal lid. Turn steam valve to closed position. Choose "Manual" button, then "-" button to set time at 120 minutes. When timer goes off, allow pressure to release naturally for 1 hour minimum. Then place dish towel or hot pad over steam valve and open it carefully to release any remaining steam. Strain and store in fridge until ready to use.
Notes
Adding apple cider vinegar
Apple cider vinegar may be added to this recipe, if desired, as an aid in extracting nutrients from the bones. If you wish to include it, use 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar in each batch of broth. Whey may also be used, as a fruit-free alternative. Contrary to many articles, bone broth is not high in minerals. It is protein that increases in bone broth from the longer cooking time. (ACV does not help to release minerals from the bones, except for a small amount of calcium.)Nutrition
Troubleshooting broth questions
- Read What To Do with Bitter Broth
- What if you don’t like broth? Look for my upcoming post on how and where to hide bone broth! to use it more often!
- How to make broth taste better by the mug — I think you’ll find that simply by making Meat Stock, you’re going to end up with the most delicious cup of broth! But to further amend your broth, you can also try these tips:
- Add a sprig of one fresh herb you love, and let it steep.
- Grate fresh ginger, and/or add fresh lemon juice. Fresh ginger and garlic are also delicious together, again with fresh lemon too, optionally.
- Follow this recipe’s idea and technique, and blend in 1 to 2 drops essential oil. My favorites are lemongrass and basil: SO delicious. You blend in butter or coconut oil at the same time, if your broth doesn’t have much fat. The result is actually light and frothy! Incredible bulletproof bone broth!
Learn more about the health benefits of bone broth here and here.
Make great soups and learn even more about stocks and broths in my newest cookbook.
nutritionally says
Megan
My we use this blog as a hand out for our patients, off course giving you credit?
Megan Stevens says
Yes, happily. 🙂
Lauren says
Can you mix the two batches when you’re finished? I would like to have the flavor of the meat broth in the same jar as the more nutrient dense bone broth. Especially since I have kids and pure bone broth doesn’t taste good (at least we don’t love it)
Susan Finney says
That was such a beautiful description of how to prepare bone broth and I loved getting the most recent information about crockpots. Thanks, Meg.
Megan Stevens says
Thank you, Susan!
J says
My broth has been coming out bitter and I had no idea why until I read this article. Thanks and happy brothing!
Shana says
I make venison bone broth every year. Are these in the photo pressure canned? Can you tell me how you do that, please. I think I might try that this year to save freezer space. It would be quicker than my dehydrated cubes for some recipes. And one more question, we are butchering Spot and Pinky this fall and wonder if I can make pork bone broth from them?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Shana,
We put our broth in jars because we can easily bring it to work with us, or to friends’ houses etc. But we don’t pressure can it. I’m sorry I’m not an expert on this and we drink ours too quickly to create a big back-stock; we just keep our broth-making going 24-7 and it’s always fresh in the jars. Occasionally, like you, I freeze ours if I have extra. Regarding Pinky and Spot, yes, pork bones make great broth. And if there’s a little meat left around the joints (which make the best broth), that meat is excellent, like slow cooked meat that is tender, flavorful and falls off the bone. So that first 3 hour broth will give you a treat of lovely meat too, as an added bonus! If not using the joint bones, then it would be ideal to saw through the other larger bones, so the marrow is exposed. Best to you!
Alissa says
Can you tell me what kind of sieve I should get? So many products say “fine” mesh but not as small as I think it should be.
Thanks
Megan says
Hi Alissa, sure, I like this one: https://amzn.to/3FvUNva See what you think. 🙂
Alison says
Hi Shana,
Thanks for this article! I agree that rancid fats are bad for us, but I’d love to know more on how the fat goes rancid and how you know it’s rancid after the times you indicate.
As saturated fats are more hardy to high temps isn’t oxidasation less of a problem?
And wouldn’t the fat smell bad if it was rancid? When I make broth the fat on the top always smells (and tastes) delicious – even after longer cooking times.
I haven’t heard of any ancestral practises handed down by broth-makers that call for skimming the fat off early either.
I’d love to know if you know more!
Thank you 🙂
Alison
mr rathbonez says
I am extremely excited to have found your blog. Finally a perfect description on how to do broth, step by step and why! My question is this: how much do you spend weekly on 24/7 broth making? 25-50$. Our chickens here are 13$ for non gmo. Our beef bones are 2$ a pound. Let me know. Very informative and thanks Megan.
Megan Stevens says
Hi and thanks for the encouraging words and for your question! The chicken price you mention sounds good and average. And that price includes the meat. Your beef bone price also sounds good and average. The price range for making bone broth weekly ranges hugely depending on the kind of bones purchased. For example, we have the best pig farmer one could ask for here in the Willamette Valley. The pigs are fed a premium, ideal diet (organic, non GM etc) and finished on local hazelnuts. But because pork bones are NOT in high demand, they sell the bones for only $1 a pound! With this source, I can make broth weekly for as little as $3 for a family of 5! However, I also make broth from chicken bones and beef marrow bones. Organic chicken legs are available at Trader Joe’s for only $2.99 a pound. After eating the meat, the bones are free, essentially. With this frugal route, we can make broth weekly for as little as $6 for a family of 5! So for the average American, bone broth can really start as low as $6 weekly. And that’s 3 mugs or bowls a day for 5 people, using the method I describe in the recipe, with 3 harvests. The price goes up from there, of course. If you are spending closer to $3.99 a pound for beef marrow bones, then $12 weekly would be the expected cost for weekly bone broth. And if you’re not feeding 5 people, the price would of course go up or down accordingly. Hope this helps! All in all, it’s not a costly food. 🙂
Linda says
What do you mean ‘after eating the meat’?
Megan says
If you cook the bones with meat on them, you may eat the meat from them, before using the bones again to make bone broth.
Alice Lau says
Hi Meg,
If using chicken feet for the broth – does it need to be soaked in vitamin C and salt water like with nuts and seeds? (Same question for preparing animals meats in general please!)
And for how long?
Do the chicken feet nails need to be cleaned or clipped off?
What about hairs on the skin? There also hairs on the skin of pigs feet….
Can they be left on the skin or do they need to be removed?
I’ve also heard somewhere that cooking chicken skin and fat isn’t that good because they are relatively high in polyunsaturated fats compared with other animals…what are your views on this?
Do you also have a offal cookbook? I’ve looked into trying to cook offal in the past but all the recipes that I look at are too complicated requiring a lot of steps or use ingredients to mask the flavour that are not ‘legal’ such as vinegar and nightshades…
Thanks!
X
Megan Stevens says
Some folks like to soak their bones in apple cider vinegar BEFORE they boil them, helping to break down and release the nutritional components. This is a fun and very optional approach. With chicken feet you’re really going to get a gelatin-rich product, no pre-soaking necessary. Just add the salt and the optional ACV to the cooking pot.
Megan Stevens says
Hi Alice, continued from my last response about chicken feet bone broth… the bone broth article gives you a detailed recipe for how long to cook everything. Yes, clean the feet, don’t clip the nails, a small amount of hair if it is well cleaned is fine. Chicken is higher in its omega 6 to omega 3 ratio than is preferred with the average American diet. Chicken in moderation is fine and good, especially if the eater isn’t buying only chicken breasts. The dark meat and the skin is great. Just follow the blog instructions to not boil the skin or fat for more than 3 hours. Lastly, offal! I have some fun blog articles on how to prepare offal. Hope you can check them out! 🙂
Kristine Smith says
I’ve been making bone broth for a few years now from our own pastured animal bones. I often will let my broth cook for 1-2 days before pressure canning it. I can it because if we part out some of our chickens I’m left with a dozen or more backs, necks, and possibly wings so I make very large batches in a large electric roaster. Anyway, I had never heard about removing the fat from the broth after the first 3 hours. What method have you found works best for you when it comes to removing the fat? And are you saying that you drink the fat you remove? I have sometimes put the most premium chicken fat aside in the fridge and used it for cooking purposes but I never considered consuming it just “as is”. Thanks for all your helpful instruction!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Kristine,
Thanks for your question. The easiest and most nutritious option is simply to drain off all the first three-hour broth into a large saucepan or storage container. Yes, you consume this first high-fat broth. It is not only very flavorful, it is quite healing to the gut. The fat is healing and there is quite a lot of gelatin, too, in this first batch. Then you refill your original pot with fresh water and salt and now you can go for 24+ hours to get the deeper gelatin, collagen and protein. LOVE that you have all those good necks, backs, and wings! 🙂
So that is the easiest method, the one I just described above. But alternately, you can simply use a large spoon and spend 5-10 minutes spooning all the fat off the top of the broth and yes, keeping it for flavoring soups, stews, sauces, and sautees. It is an excellent source of rich flavor when cooking, as you know. Consuming it “as is” is for when you’ve harvested the broth with the fat, not just spooned the fat off separately.
Hope this helps!
Kristine Smith says
Thank you, Megan! You thoroughly answered my questions. I’m excited to do this your way next week when I thaw and process another batch of backs/necks/wings.
Healthy says
Hi Megan
Thanks for the article on bone broth. I have read so many articles on bone broth and nobody has mentioned about harvesting after the first three hours, great to know this.
My question is how do your store the bones after harvesting the first three hours until you have time to do the second broth. Also do you use raw bones or do you roast it before using it for the broth.
Thanks
Healthy.
Megan Stevens says
Hi Healthy,
Both using raw and roasted bones turn out to good effect. Roasted bones are more noticeably delicious with certain kinds of bones, for instance turkey. I never roast chicken feet, as an alternate example. Roasting beef marrow bones is totally optional, awesome broth either way… Regarding storing the bones after the first harvest of broth, I do not. (But you can.) I just keep the next batch going; and if I don’t need it all, then I freeze or refrigerate the rest until I need it. But with our big family of 5 consuming broth 3 times a day each, we never have too much broth, lol! For your purposes, if you’d rather wait to do the next round of broth, you can freeze the bones, no problem, before making the second broth. Cheers.
Marie says
I’ve never heard of the 3 hour thing. What I’ve recently been doing is cooking a whole chicken, and the typical veggies, in the crockpot for 24 hours. But it sounds like you wouldn’t recommend this. What would you think of cooking the whole chicken for 3 hours, drain the broth, debone the chicken and reserve the cooked meat for another use, and then cook the bones for 24-72 hours?
Megan Stevens says
Yes, this is the perfect solution, just as you describe. And, as you perhaps implied, keep that first 3 hour broth that you drain off, full of fat, flavor and gelatin! 🙂
Marie says
I happened to have a crock going as I came across your post. It was the ‘old way’ – chicken with meat on & veggies. Cooked for 24 hours. I took the meat off to use for dinners. Do you think I could use the bones one more time? Put them in the crock again for another 24 hours?
Megan Stevens says
Yes! Adding in more sea salt… 🙂
Linda says
My husband and I are sodium sensitive, is there another alternative?
Megan says
Hi Linda, good question, how do you do with potassium chloride? Here’s the recipe I like to make that has greatly reduced sodium, or you can use just potassium chloride. The article talks about these and links to the products: https://eatbeautiful.net/homemade-lite-salt-salt-substitute-recipe-morton-copycat-salt-potassium/
Sarah says
This is really helpful! I have had a question about this process for some time. I usually cook a whole chicken in the crock pot (about 4-5 hours) with no liquid added. Then I throw the carcass back in to make broth. So is all the liquid that is in there from cooking the chicken considered the “first broth” that I should harvest? And then when I make broth from the carcass, is that really the 2nd harvest that should go for the 24 hours? Thanks for your help!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Sara, I apologize! Somehow I missed answering your question sooner. The liquid that gathers from cooking your chicken is going to be rich with fat and gelatin; so yes, save and enjoy that goodness. But you’re still going to get fat off of your carcass. So, still do the first batch for 3 hours; harvest that, because it will have more fat. And then start your longer 24 hour batch.
rahy says
Hi Megan
Thanks for the very informative article! I had heard of women drinking broth of chicken necks after delivering a baby and found no further information on why it’s useful. Have you come across this practice or recommend it or do you recommend chicken feet over necks?
Also, if we do not have access to organic non GMO meat and bones, could this broth still be consumed or does it do more harm than good?
Thanks
Megan Stevens says
Hi Rahy,
I don’t know of nutrients in the neck that are considerably different than those in the feet; but there may be some native knowledge that’s been largely lost. Both necks and feet are great. I ate more organ meat for greater iron intake after my babies. Regarding the quality of the bones, I highly recommend US Wellness Meats, online. There are some great things about our modern world, one of which is the ability to order good stuff when it’s not grown locally. If your budget is an issue, order their pork bones. They make great bone broth and are very economical! Cheers. (I would not make broth with conventional bones.)
amber says
I do not enjoy the smell of broth cooking in my house. If you have it going all the time,is there a way you keep your house from smelling like broth 24/7?
Megan Stevens says
I love this question. I have gotten it many times. 🙂 So you’re not the only one who feels this way. Many customers and clients that I work with have attached garages to their homes. They put their crock pot in there and everyone’s happy! Hope this option will work for you! 🙂
leo says
curious, low or high soup setting in the instant pot?
Megan says
Hi Leo, high.
Katie @ Kitchen Stewardship says
Hi Meg,
I’m curious about the 3-hours-or-less rancid fat idea – do you have a source for that or an explanation of why the fat would go rancid if left on the heat for too long? Is it just if the stock is boiling away or also at a gentle simmer? Thanks! 🙂 Katie
Megan Stevens says
Hi Katie, thanks for the question! The insight comes from the GAPS book written by Dr. Natasha C-M. As with so much of her knowledge it’s jam packed among so many other wonderful details that it took me rereading the book to find it. But the cool thing was that I had experienced it for years, that horrible rancid flavor; so when I read it, it rang true and I was so thankful to be able to make the change accordingly. Boiling on high does make it worse; but even on low it happens. Blessings. 🙂
Abbe says
I bought Sam’s Choice Chicken Bone Broth from Walmart, but stupidly remembered I have two chicken carcasses already in my fridge.
Now I know that homemade bone broth is way more nutritious for you, I want to make it from scratch in the crockpot.
If I use the store bought bone broth and used it instead of water to cook the bones in, will that work or be a total disaster?
I just want to use the store bought bone broth since I wasted money on it.
Megan says
Hi Abbe, I wouldn’t re-cook and use the store bought broth. I would freeze the carcasses for next time, and use the broth. Or if the broth hasn’t been opened, make bone broth with the carcasses, and save the broth for another time. I’m assuming it’s shelf stable and will last.
Abbe Chism says
Thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly!
Only thing is the store bought broth, I’ll have no use for it because it’s so bland and tasteless.
I read about putting chicken bouillon in the bone broth to give it some depth and just a comforting taste that makes it enjoyable and tasty and fix bland tasteless broth.
Wouldn’t using store bone broth kinda of being the same?
It’s not very strong, in fact its downright watery and garbage.
Megan says
The store bought bone broths that I link to all have a description so you can read which ones are flavorful and which ones aren’t. I wouldn’t buy bouillon, though, as it has terrible ingredients. The broth you have could be used in a really flavorful soup, so it won’t matter, as one idea of how to use it.
Maureen Lynn Widmer says
Pondering and questioning the resulting nutritional benefits if bone broth is pressure canned…I wonder, would it be possible to roast the beef bones (we raise our own cattle) and then place one bone in a qt. canning jar? Cover with previously made (seasoned) bone broth, and pressure can? It seems to me that the result *should* be gelatinous and the highest nutrition content possible. I know this is an old thread, but I would love to hear from others practicing the art of pressure canning. Thanks in advance…
Megan Stevens says
Some of the best gelatin comes out of the bones in the first 1-2 hours; so I like your idea and think it’s well worth trying! 🙂 Great idea.
Brian Hagan says
Hi Megan,
Can I re-combine the first broth with the second after they’ve both been draw off? Does ratio matter?
Megan Stevens says
Yes, definitely you can combine them. No, the ratio is subjective. More fat or less fat, according to what you have or to taste.
Brian Hagan says
Thanks. I’m curious, what temperature setting do you boil at? Cuz I boiled my first batch at max for three hours and got 2 quarts of broth. Then I boiled again for almost 24 but only at 2 and I got almost the full 16 quarts of my stockpot, LOL.
Megan Stevens says
You can cook your first batch at whatever temperature you prefer, as long as it doesn’t cook longer than 3 hours. I would then harvest any marrow that is loose enough to fall out of the bones. Sounds like your first batch evaporated A LOT and you could lower the temperature so it simmers but doesn’t boil.
Brian Hagan says
Oh, and do I need to scoop the marrow out of the bones after 12-24hrs? Cuz there was mooshy stuff where the marrow lives but I discarded that.
Megan Stevens says
The “mooshy” stuff is good eatin’. If you don’t want it, I’d still keep it and puree it into soups or sauces. It’s healthy and has a rich flavor that will improve any dish. Yes, that’s the marrow.
Jessi Campbell says
Hi Megan! Thank you so much for all these great tips! Couple of questions.. what exactly is the scum you scrape off in the beginning? And why is this not a concern/need when using the instant pot? I’ve been using bison bones and was cooking for wayyyy to long because the bones never got brittle like I’ve always heard they’re supposed to. Perhaps because they’re so dense. With this shorter cooking time, do your beef marrow bones get brittle? And also, with the marrow, is it the same as fat? Does it need to be harvested with the first batch?
Thank you!
Jessi
Megan says
Hi Jessi, happy to help! The scum is various impurities trapped in proteins that exude. Yes, it can and should still be scraped out from the IP after the first 30 minute cooking. Bones don’t need to break down completely to get the collagen and gelatin from them, but you do get more protein from them the longer they boil and break down. It’s just a matter of how determined you are to get the full amount. “Supposed to” is a hard place of feeling obligated to make bone broth one right way, but in fact, 2 hours in the IP gives you plenty of collagen and gelatin, as well as all of the flavor. Lastly, good question about the marrow: Yes, you should remove it when you remove the other fat, after that first cooking.
Andrea C. says
Hi Megan. I want to make sure I understand this recipe. I already bought my 1.5 pounds of grass Fed bones at WF lastnight. OK, so from what I understand: The first 2-3 hours of cooking in crock pot; is that on low or high? Then after that; No skimming; save Everything, correct? Then repeat; re-adding new liquids again using same bones and cook Low for 24 hours. Am I skimming or throwing anything away after this 24 hour cycle is over? Also, thanks for the tip. I will probably have to do this in garage; as I know hubby will hate this smell. Ha!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Andrea. 🙂 Skim off any scum, yes, during the first 3 hour boil. (Is that what you mean when you mention skimming, the scum?) Not all bones produce scum. Pork bones do. Many other kinds do not. There shouldn’t be any scum in the 24-hour simmer. If there is a bit, sure, skim it off. On low or high for first 2-3 hours is fine, either one. Just no boiling after 3 hours. Once that first batch is harvested I recommend low heat for the first 24 hour batch with new water and salt. However, if you do a batch after that, with new water and salt, that batch can cook on high. What determines this is there being no fat left at all in the broth. If there is a bit of fat then I cook on low. The 48 and 72 hour batches often have no fat left and you get extra flavor and nutrition by cooking them on high in that final stage. Hope this helps. Let me know if you need further clarification. 🙂
Joan says
Hi Megan,
I made my bone broth last week. I used venison bones. The first batch (first 3 hrs) not any fat and probably makes sense since the meat is very lean. My second batch continued with bones, fresh water, ACV and salt for about 30 hrs. Both batches in the crock pot. The 1st batch like I said little fat and not gelatinous. The 2nd batch I put in frig and the next day found layer of fat and the entire bowl was gelatinous. I am thrilled as this is first time a lot of gelatin. In the past i rarely have any gelatin with maybe a handful of times doing. I think I read that your 1st batch has moe gel. I want to know if I did correct. Also , I think I want to mix teo batches and wnoder your thoughts and recommendations? Thank you so much for the detailed recipe.
Joan
Megan Stevens says
Hi Joan! So glad for your success and thanks for your questions! Did the refrigerated first batch show no fat? If no fat, then there’s no need to strain it off. If you keep them separate, yes, you can combine the two broths, for sure. I do get a better gel with my first batch, yes. But, if you get NO fat at all with that first batch and don’t strain it off then your single batch should have that amount of gel still. It sounds to me like your long boil with the lean bones and the ACV is the right combination. Let me know if I’m not quite clear or if you have further questions. 🙂
Katie Trammell says
I’m happy to see a comment thread about venison bones. I’ve been researching how to do that specifically! Yours is the only blog I’ve come across that mentions making the first batch for only 3 hours… Is it just for skimming off anything that rises to the top, or for removing all of the broth and then starting again? I’m a bit uncertain as to why I need to do that versus just simmering it all for 24 hours? I’ve also come across a few places that have said to roast venison bones in the oven prior to using them for broth. Do you think that is necessary? Is it for flavor, or for another reason? Happy To have found you online!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Katie, thanks for your questions and comment. This bit from the Notes answers your first question: “The fat from the first 2-3 hour boil NEEDS to be consumed (or skimmed
off and saved) after this time period has elapsed. If the fat continues
to boil it will become rancid.” Fat that boils becomes rancid. You can even taste and smell the rancidity.
Roasting bones is optional. With some bones it lends a nice depth of flavor. With other bones, like bone marrow, the broth is excellent either way. It’s a very optional step. Cheers!
Katie Trammell says
Sorry I missed that part! After reading so many different things, sometimes I forget what I’ve read or where I’ve read it! I don’t want any rancid broth, so I will definitely do that step! 🙂
Thanks for answering my questions, and for the quick reply!
Megan Stevens says
No problem and you’re welcome! 🙂
Katie Trammell says
Thanks to your blog and you answering my questions….here it is! You can totally see the difference in batches! My first batch (3.5 hours) made three quarts, but I’ve already used one. The second batch is solid gel, and I’m pretty excited about that! The last batch just finished, so I’ll have to wait and see what it does. It looks like my results (using venison bones) were just like Joan’s from the comment above, with the most fat in the second batch. I felt like I needed to share this picture with people who would appreciate it! ☺️
Megan Stevens says
Thanks for sharing! Wonderful. I’m not sure why you get so much fat in your middle batch and less in your first batch. Are you cooking your 24 hour batch over low heat? That would be my only precaution to add, since you still have so much fat in that second batch, better for it to cook very low and slow than to simmer. Again, love the pic, very appreciated indeed. 😉
Megan Stevens says
You could also skim off fat from the second batch as it cooks, if you have the energy for that added step! 🙂
Katie Trammell says
Yes, the crock pot was either on “low” or “Warm”. I switched it back and forth when I noticed it might be a little too hot, and based on what you had said, I didn’t want it to go bad.
Joan says
Thanks for sharing your photo.
Lulu says
Why don’t you parboil like most say to do? Also, I used bones from my roasted chicken to make my sick toddler bone broth and didn’t know about rancid fat. Should I just dump it now??!
Megan says
Hi Lulu, this scum from parboiling can be skimmed off at 30 minutes either way, so it’s just one more step. Personally, yes, I would dump it.
Joan says
Hi Megan, I made the bone broth again with the venison bones again. Do you add more water during any time? I have read other people’s versions of bone broth and they do. Will you tell me more about the optional 3rd batch? I didn’t know until further down in the other comments. Thanks!!
Megan Stevens says
Yes, do add water as it evaporates, as needed. The 3rd batch just continues to pull out amino acids from the bones, as well as collagen. It’s optional depending on how frugal someone is. There are still nutrients in the bones; but the flavor changes with each batch and there is no fat left.
Joan says
Great now I know for next time. I didn’t add any water and produced a lot less in the 2nd batch (36 hrs) than the 1st. I do have a 3rd batch going only because I have never done a 3rd batch and am curious. I love reading your posts! Thank you so much!
Megan Stevens says
You’re welcome; and thank you! 😉
Kristie Lynn Bailey says
Just wondering if canning the broth changes the nutrients? And also if I use the bone broth to cook a pork roast can I save all that broth to drink ? I am so very excited about this blog! thank you Kristie
Megan Stevens says
Hi Kristie, thanks for your questions. The nutrients stay intact through canning. And yes, all the broth from cooking your pork roast is delicious, nutrient-dense and full of good fat. I often do the same thing. Thanks for your excitement about the blog; so glad!! 🙂
Laura Lawver says
Hi Megan –
I attended the presentation that you did at Lane last week. I was inspired to make some bone broth and made some today. Mine is not nearly as clear as yours was. It has all sorts of brown goobers floating around in it. I skimmed it with a spoon after about an hour and yet… when I poured off my three hour broth, goobers galore. I’m fine pureeing these into a soup, but I was hoping to drink the broth plain. I think the goobers will rise to the top and settle in the fat, but if I wait and skim it all off then I will lose the fat. Help? I have four mason jars full of broth on my counter and I’m wondering if it is usable. I read through this blog and don’t see anyone else with this problem. I used backs and a neck. Pasture raised chicken from Long’s.
Oh… now I see that you suggest straining the broth. Perhaps this is where i went wrong? I used a strainer but it is not a very fine one. What kind of strainer do you use to get the clear broth?
Thanks – Laura
Megan Stevens says
Hi Laura, thanks for the chuckle. Goobers is a great word. Can you pour your broth through a fine mesh strainer? That will do the trick. The fat will come through, but no goobers! 🙂 Does that help? This is indeed what we do at our shop, before quarting it up. Yours is definitely usable!! 🙂 Don’t toss it…. A metal strainer… Let me see if I can find a link so you see an example: http://amzn.to/1LR56aZ The biggest of these three will be great for the job. I use the little one sometimes, too, at home, when I ladle straight from the crock pot into my mug. Cheers!!
Laura Lawver says
Hi Megan –
My 24 hour broth was gorgeous!!! So pretty and drinkable with no straining. I’m going to get the strainers nonetheless, so that my 3 hour broth looks just as pretty. But I’m slurping down my 24 hour broth quite happily… Thank you!!!
Laura
Megan Stevens says
Yay!!! So glad!! 🙂
Kimberly says
Hi Megan, thank you for all of the good information,
especially the rancid fat situation! After all these years, I had no idea! I do have the GAPS book, but am having no luck finding this info. Would you be willing to give me the name of the chapter I can find it?
Blessings,
Kim
Megan says
Hi Kim, you’re welcome. 🙂 It’s been years since I read that information, so I don’t know actually. It was the first step in me doing more research and having my eyes opened to the concept, and then changing how I made broth forever, but I didn’t record the page number. Sorry and blessings!
Diane B says
I like your detailed post about the steps. I make bone broth without vegetables and I make it in the electric pressure cooker. I guess I would change the times to 40 minutes and 4 hours. What do you think?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Diane, I don’t have a pressure cooker, yet. But I’d love to get one soon. Your time guess sounds good to me. Maybe 30 minutes for the first go round; and then 4 hours.
Anna @GreenTalk says
I added my leftover vegetable peels to the soup and cooked it for 24 hours in my crockpot. I never skimmed. I guess I will have to start doing that. Can I leave out the salt? I have to watch my salt intake. Also, what do you do with the leftover fat? Cook with it?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Anna. Do you have to limit SEA salt or table salt? Is this what a medical doctor or
a holistic doctor told you? I wouldn’t leave out the sea salt entirely.
But you can reduce it; and you can use the ACV, which helps to pull the
nutrients from the bones. Yes, the leftover fat can be used for cooking
or stirred into soups and stews. I personally love adding fat into
finished dishes, as well as cooking with it.
Renee Kohley says
Love all those marrow bones!
Megan Stevens says
Me too, Renee. They warm the heart, lol. 🙂
Krista Erickson says
I greatly appreciate the details of your post on how to make nutritionally rich bone broth. Going thorough the 52 comments has helped to answer some of my own questions as well, but I have a few that come to mind. I also live in the Willamette Valley, just north of Albany, and was wondering if you are able to share the source for the pork bones that you use for your main broth to keep your costs down. I had heard the pork stores up toxins and so it would not be good to be used even if raised properly – but maybe it is not common to find a source of pork that is truly raised in such a way to be safe to consume. Also, you mention that the best broth is from chicken feet – where is the best source to buy them? You also mentioned that chicken should be “consumed in moderation because it being high in its omega 6 – omega 3 ratio” – I had never heard of that. So, from the research that you have come across are the best broths from chicken feet and beef with pork being considered just as healthy or comparable to chicken to be eaten in moderation. To say the least, you have done a remarkable job at answering the details of so many questions to help the rest of us who are trying to learn how to cook healthfully and apply it to our lives and those in our family. Thanks!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Krista. You can call Deck Family Farm and see if they have pork bones. We have gotten them from Deck in the past. Currently we know two families who raise pigs on pasture; and we get their bones at slaughter time. Deck has been known to give pig bones away for free when you purchase other meat from them, or for $1 a pound. You can ask them about those options. Yes, pork is certainly a controversial meat! It works really well for my body; so I continue to eat it. But I have read the conflicting views about it. The fat profile of pork is good, even excellent. If they are pasture-raised, I believe it to be a good option. Chicken feet can also be purchased from Deck Family Farm, unless they run out. But any pasture-raised bones are good. Regarding the over-consumption of chicken, this applies to chicken breasts, which Americans love. Dark meat chicken and the skin have much better fatty acid profiles than the breast meat, which is fine if eaten in moderation. Thanks for your kind words!! I’m not sure if I understand or answered your very final question. Feel free to write again if there is a bit more you’d like me to clarify. 🙂
Jennifer Hancock says
Is broth made from a whole chicken as nutritious as broth made from just chicken bones? Currently I can only get whole chickens (working to locate a bone source) and have been using the broth from cooking whole chickens. Most bone broth protocols mention just bones. Perhaps I should make broth from my chicken bones after initial cooking and removing of the meat? New to bone broth
so any helps would be appreciated. Thanks!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Jennifer, what you said works beautifully! You can roast or poach the whole chicken; and then the bones can be used for an excellent broth.
Jennifer Hancock says
Thanks! I’ll start roasting today. BTW – love your site. The recipes and helpful info have brought a smile back to food allergy / sensitivity cooking and eating. Thank you, thank you!
Megan Stevens says
Oh, I’m so glad! That brings me a smile, too!!!
Una says
I was wondering about the chicken feet. Do I peel the fatty skin off of them after the 2-3 hour cooking time?
Megan Stevens says
Good question. No the skin can remain. Most of their fat will melt in the first 3 hours of cooking.
cindy cook says
What about using a pressure cooker for bone broth?
Megan Stevens says
Yes, definitely. 🙂 I discuss cooking times for pressure cookers and bone broth in some of the other comments, if that would be helpful.
Kathy Kelley Umphress says
I need to freeze most of my broth since I Iive alone. What containers do you recommend?
Megan Stevens says
You can use glass mason jars; but the key, so they don’t break is two-part: one, leave 3 inches of head room and two, most importantly, freeze them on their sides. This makes a huge difference; and my husband could tell you exactly why, lol! Hope that helps. Cheers.
Elaine4RealHope says
Hi Kathy, on the Mason/Kerr jars, they need to be straight sided. You can see the difference at the store or online. You still need to leave headroom and lay them on their sides.
Nat'Lee says
I was trying to make a chicken broth for a year now, and never like it. I did like it when I make the chicken bullion (up to 2 hours boning). I was wondering what was I doing wrong, and was reading many posts and watching many videos. And for the first time I read: “The fat from the first 2-3 hour boil NEEDS to be consumed (or skimmed off and saved) after this time period has elapsed. If the fat continues to boil it will become rancid.” May be that is my problem – I don’t collect the fat?! My broth becomes cloudy and smells very heavy. It gives me heartburn. But I tough it is because it was too fatty.
Also, my broth never becomes like a gelatin. I use a “whole chicken soup bones” from a local farmer. No feet, no head, no legs, no wings. The becomes very fatty. I do add vinegar, and let it sit for 30 min before boiling. I use a crockpot or a pressure cooker.
Thank you!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Nat’Lee, I think you’re now on the right track: remove the fat from the first 2-3 hour boil to protect the flavor and prevent rancidity. If you aren’t getting a gel then you need a greater bone AND JOINT ratio to water. Wings would be great, or feet etc. If you can’t get joints then use more bones. Then you should get the gel you’re looking for. You’re welcome and cheers!
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
Thank you for sharing the different times with us. I think my family needs the 2-3 hour range right now for healing. But we also do the 24 hours.
Mary Ellen Ramos says
Reading this late after cooking bones five hours. Will be skimming and pouring off broth for soup tonight and tomorrow. I don’t have a source for pastured whole chickens or their parts except the eighteen dollar a piece variety (not in my budget). Do I skip the idea of bone broth or use the all natural, nothing added chickens sold at the store, and I have no idea about source of chicken feet.
Brandy Myers says
Good Question. I was curious about this too. I anticipitate the response
Megan Stevens says
See above. 🙂
Megan Stevens says
Hi Mary, that is such a hard question. It depends on why you are drinking bone broth. The source of the bones is really important in terms of the nutrition or toxins that come from them. If a person was really ailing, as I once was, then bone broth would still be the most healing food. But long term use of bones that aren’t natural or pastured would not be a good idea in my opinion. It would be worth considering if sustainably-sourced gelatin is in the budget, such as is offered by Great Lakes or Vital Proteins. If you are in good general health, then I think occasional bone broth, with the bones you can afford, and supplementation with well-sourced gelatin may be the best happy middle. I hope that helps!
djoy11 says
Do you have a mexican meat market in your area? If so – try that or any regular meat market. Perhaps these will become more popular in the grocery stores as bone broth becomes more popular!
Evlyn Llanos says
(regarding your youtube)I wasted so many bones by making this mistake of over- boiling. thank you for setting me straight ;0
Megan Stevens says
You’re welcome! 🙂 From this point on, no more wasted bones. 😉
Lara C says
Is the 2nd boil of 24 to 72 hours usable? Is it as good as the first boil of 2 to 3 1/2 hours? What is the difference with the broth from the first boil to the broth from the 72 hour boil? Are they both as nutritious? Could I harvest the fat after the first 3 hours and continue the boil up to 72 hours and harvest more fat if anymore comes out?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Lara, the first boil has lots of gelatin and fat. The longer boils have more protein and collagen. They are both nutritious in different ways. The first boil is more flavorful.
Lara C says
Thank you.
Audrey Smith Ramon says
On the first boil are you supposed to use the “low” or “high” setting on the crockpot?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Audrey, I’m sorry that I didn’t see your question until now. Either is fine for the first 3 hours.
Tony R. says
I have been making chicken bone broth and absolutely love it, even better with your tips, comes out golden, and buttery, instead of dark brown and a little odd. 😉
Question on beef: We got some sawed marrow bones from the local butcher that they sell from locally raised cows over here in Central, OR – no particular ranch, just a grab bag from what they process for local farms. They’re grass fed, pastured, and NOT feed lot cows, but not necessarily organic, or antibiotic free over their life, but likely are (hard to say: since they’re from many farms). It’s the best we could do for the time, and WAY better than the other alternatives.
Still on my quest for good bones as I make calls to the farms.
Did them in a digital pressure cooker, about 90min on high on the 1st round, harvested all of that broth along with any loose marrow and did the longer cook at 4.5hrs with new water and salt.
? #1 – They have an almost off-putting somewhat sulfuric smell, not that appetizing smell the chicken bones give off. Was this simply because we didn’t roast them 1st (decided to try it that way), or is this normal?
? #2 – After round 2, almost all the bones lost their marrow, gloppy brown goobery, gelatin like stuff, yeah? That is, save for one of the larger bones, it lost some, and what’s left that doesn’t easily scrape out, is like channeled calcium, which I can scrape out, but it’s crunchy and crusty (not the outer bone). I can chew it, gritty with a pretty rich flavor, but once chewed the grit is gone, almost better than the fat-like marrow goobers as it has a more complex flavor. Should I harvest this too, or does it need to cook longer than the nearly 6hrs total it has elapsed?
Thank you SO MUCH!!! Megan, for your wonderful blog and the AAAHMAZING beef soup (albeit a little too peppery) I had at your Cafe in my former hometown of Eugene. I can’t eat meat right now, and I actually didn’t feel ill for the 1st time!! <3 hugs my fellow foodie healer 🙂
Megan Stevens says
Hi Tony, I recommend that the first batch of broth in a pressure cooker last for 30 minutes. The fat can go rancid, which is likely what you smelled, with the longer cooking. I’m not exactly sure what you’re referring to on the round 2 batch. Is it cartilage? If so, it’s fine to eat it or cook it longer, first. So glad you’re finding foods you can eat! Many blessings!
Tony R. says
Megan, thank you for your speedy reply! 🙂
We did another round, roasted them for an hour or so, till nice in color and rendering off some of the fat, then cooked them for the correct amount of time this time. 30min, harvested all that, refilled with water and salt, then 4hrs. All done in the pressure cooker on high.
Still stank something fierce!! gags
I can’t eat it anyway, made me feel AWFUL, just as if I ate the meat itself. So it’s back to chicken bone broth. :/
We found free range backs here, frozen, will that work, or do we need all the other parts?
My wife can’t do the feet, she can’t stomach it and I’m too ill to mess with them otherwise I wouldn’t care. 😉
Megan Stevens says
Hi Tony, backs are great!!! Wonderful choice!
Shannon Hazleton says
wow. I have been making bone broth for years, and I NEVER knew I was supposed to harvest after the first 2-3 hours to prevent rancidity. Oh my. Thanks for the very thorough details and answer all these comments and questions.
Megan Stevens says
You’re welcome. So glad it’s been helpful! 🙂
Kimberly Wolfson says
Are we supposed to begin and maintain a high level boil, high level and then simmer, or simmer (low level on stove) the entire time?
Tatia Veltkamp says
Do yo have issues with the water level boiling off in a crockpot? With my second and third broth from the same bones I always have to add more water part way through so it doesn’t end up dry. Anyone have suggestions on how to prevent that? Or should I just add the water? Thanks!
Megan Stevens says
That’s fine, to add more water; it’s expected. 🙂 You can lower the heat, if your crock pot is adjustable, so it doesn’t evaporate as much. It can cook at barely a simmer.
Joelle says
Wow! I am so excited to try this with my broth. Quick question: how do you actually skim the fat at the first “harvest” of the broth? Is there a quick and easy way to do this, or do you normally just strain out all the broth? Also what equipment do you use for straining? I always find this the most cumbersome/messy part, but maybe it is because I don’t have the right equipment. 😉
Megan Stevens says
Hi Joelle, I understand! It can feel that way. My equipment is very make-shift actually: it’s just a metal measuring cup that I skim over the surface again and again, pouring off the fat into another dish as I go. Over time it becomes a peaceful thing. I think in the beginning it causes anxiety because we’re not sure if we’re doing it right or getting all of the fat! 🙂 So you don’t need to strain it all. The process takes about 5 minutes or less. I hope that helps.
Carol Terney Federoff says
I’m still confused here….I don’t see a difference in the top layers of my broth from the bottom. Do you take all or practically ALL of the broth out?? Or just ladle a few inches? Are you actually straining something??
Megan Stevens says
There are usually floating bubbles of fat. If you don’t see those, your bones may have no fat on them.
Carol Terney Federoff says
Lots of bubbles- throughout. Not just at the top. That’s what I don’t understand. Why just skim the top when the fat is all through it??
Megan Stevens says
Fat usually rises to the top. If yours is throughout, then chill it first. This will cause it to rise, solidify and then you can skim it off easily.
Carol Terney Federoff says
Oh I didn’t know that you cool it first!!
Mike Rioux says
Do you initially use high-med heat for the 1st harvest of fat? Or just simmer
Megan Stevens says
You can do either. I just simmer. But that first 2 hour broth will not be harmed over higher heat.
Mike Rioux says
Ahh ok, i was simmering 24-48 hrs without removing anything. No wonder why I was getting so much gas-rancid fat! Its weird because there seems like so much fat but it doesnt all solidify in fridge? Only a small amount did
Megan Stevens says
It may not be fat if it’s not solidifying. Animal fat will solidify when chilled.
Ash says
Hi megan and fellow broth friends. I just posted above about my first attempt at beef bone broth with the result of it being incredibly bitter. I’m wondering maybe it’s bc I didn’t scoop out the fat first? And it was rancid? I can’t get the taste out of my mouth! Please help!
Kimberly Wolfson says
If you just get a wire sieve or some cheese cloth you can strain all the fat from the broth. You can get them on Amazon. There are also YouTube videos on how to do that available online. It’s super easy. The biggest challenge for me is having the ideal container for storing the soup but also removing the refrigerated fat from the top. Some mason jars have too small of an opening and it’s hard to work with.
Rachel Klem says
Hi Megan, I made my first two batches of bone broth this week. I got a link to your blog from a friend and am interested in making broth for my own health and for a friend who had surgery. He’s on a broth only diet for a few weeks. I was unsure at first that i had followed your directions correctly, but this morning when I harvested the second batch I was delighted by the outcome! Reading the comments and clarifying questions/answers from your readers and you helped immensely to reassure me as I went through the process. Thanks so much! This pic does not do justice to the deliciousness!
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/723571a500825df4dc8f6bb81d3d0a885514aaf37c710e04a352987bbc8e4685.jpg
Megan Stevens says
Yay, Rachel!! I’m so so glad!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful experience and outcome! Bravo!! 🙂
Lisa Lash says
Hi Megan, I am so interested in making bone broth soups; have had recipes for a while now. Just wanted to let you know that the INSTANT POT 6QT is on sale for $68 on Amazon right now. I bought one for the same price just two days ago! I hope you are able to get it for such an awesome price! Blessings to you, Lisa
Megan Stevens says
Hi Lisa, SO sweet of you; thank you!! Yes, I did get one for a loved one the day they were on sale; and I got myself one finally several months ago. I love it for bone broth SO much! Blessings, too!! xo
Josephine Palomino says
Hi Megan….I recently bought your new cookbook and I can’t wait to make the warm green smoothie once I make my first batch of broth. My first question to you is should I include any or all of the skin that comes on the chicken backs and necks in my pot? And my second question is it better to try to stick mainly with beef broth since chicken has too much omega 6 fats?
Megan Stevens says
Hi Josephine! Yes, do include the skin for the first 3 hour broth. Then remove it when you remove the fat, for the longer batches (24-72). I think of chicken breasts as being high in omega-6s, but not the rest of the bird. I would choose your animal and bones based more on which animal you can source grass-fed and pesticide-free. If you can get both that way, then try both for flavor and see which you prefer; or decide based on cost. That’s my take. 😉 So glad you bought the cookbook and that you’re looking forward to the smoothie!! 🙂 xo!
Josephine Palomino says
Megan thanks for inspiring me to take control of my health. Please understand how important that makes you. Also I hope to see your soup recipe book soon. Be well.?
Megan Stevens says
You’re welcome, and thank you for your kind feedback! <3 Be well, too! 🙂
Lindsay says
Do you roast the beef bones if they are raw and frozen before putting in crock pot?
Megan Stevens says
No, you don’t need to. 🙂
Ash says
Hi Megan! I just made my first pot of beef bone broth in a crock pot. I read that I should blanch the bones first for 20 mins ( a lot of stuff floated to surface) roasted them for 40 mins, and cooked for about 30 hrs. But it turned out so bitter and gross! I’m not sure what I did wrong. Please help!
Megan Stevens says
Hi Ash, I would follow the recipe on this page, simply– without adding any extra steps. Your broth was over-cooked, which is why it turned out bitter.
Elizabeth says
hi Megan,
so happy to find your website and I can’t wait to order your cookbook. We are on GAPS intro now so I will wait less be tempted…
I have a question about the broths. Sounds like you don’t put any veggie scraps in. Do you ever use them in bone broth? Just wondering if I should forgo saving veggie scraps for broth.
thank you!
Elizabeth
Megan Stevens says
Hi Elizabeth, I discuss that above. But happy to answer here, too. I don’t include veggie scraps ever. It negatively changes the flavor and is unnecessary. Yay for your GAPS journey! Blessings, and enjoy the cookbook when you’re ready! 🙂
Elizabeth says
Thanks so much for answering my comment Megan. I was just wondering if you used veggie scrap for anything else besides the bone broth? I look forward to making my bone broth like you recommended above. Thank you!!!
Anna @GreenTalk says
Meg, can I can my broth? I would like to make a bunch for my kids to have away from home. I always wondered if pressure canning destroys any of the benefits.
Megan Stevens says
Hi Anna, I’m sorry to have not responded sooner, just seeing your comment now. The gelatin itself is not destroyed, as there are many testimonies online of folks canning their bone broth and it maintaining an excellent gel. I suspect the other nutrients are also intact; but there is less information available on that question.
G M says
Hi Megan, I just tried your receipt, and after 3 hours of simmering I harvested my broth with the hope it would be jelly. Guess what? It’s not jelly. I used beef bones, including meadows. You’re the only one who says that all the gelatin will be in the broth after simmering it for just 3 hours, but I tried it and it didn’t work. Maybe if you showed us with a video how it works, make a harvest of a 3 hours bone broth and show us how jelly it is. That would help.
Megan Stevens says
Hi GM, if your broth did not gel then you need to increase the ratio of bones to water, so more bones. Use 3-4 lbs bones per batch.
Thais DeGoes says
Megan,
Thank you for this helpful information and the time you invest in helping people like me. Starting GAPS Intro tomorrow and I am making beef broth today using your recipe above.
I was skimming the scum off the top at the half hour mark just now. and noticing that lots of grayish brown stuff in circulating in my pot. I am using beef neck and collar joints as well as a marrow bone. What is this chunky, foamy, brownish gray stuff in my pot and should I strain it out? Thanks !
Megan Stevens says
Hi Thais, you’re welcome. 🙂 Based on your description it is likely cooked blood. It is harmless. Blessings as you head into GAPS Intro; yay!!! 🙂
Thais DeGoes says
Ewww. Really? Well thanks for the help Megan. May the Lord return your blessings tenfold!
Estell Lam says
Megan, Thank you so much for your article! I’ve done bone broth for a couple of years with inconsistent results and I didn’t know why. From your article, I think because I overcooked it. Sometimes I get a bad batch, other times it turns out fine with the same amount of time cooking. I think I get bad results mostly when I put in an onion or other veggies. This last time, I get a bad batch for just putting in some Kirkland “Organic No-Salt Seasoning” mix that includes onion, garlic, carrot, …
I will also try harvesting the 30-minute batch (I use Instant Pot). That sounds amazing! I take out all the “fat” thinking it’s bad for us.
Do you blanch the bones? If so, all bones (including chicken)? How long? I wonder how long to blanch before it starts to take away some of the good stuff.
Again, thank you very much for sharing your knowledge and time.
Jessica Olhiser says
Thanks for this explanation and recipe. I used it to make bone broth for the first time and it taste much better than I had expected!
Will you please explain how to store the broth? I used the option of putting the bones in the instant pot twice, so now I have a lot of it.
Also, do you just drink it or do you use as you would broth for soups and such?
Thank you!
Megan says
Hi Jessica, I’m so glad you like the taste. As long as the broth has fat across the top, the broth will be sealed when it chills. This gives it a long shelf life, a minimum of one week, but often two weeks in the fridge (when the fat is sealing the broth underneath). Whatever you can’t use within that time, you can freeze. Do this by leaving 2 inches of head room in your mason jars, screw the lids on tight and turn the jars on their sides. This increases the surface area and allows for some expansion without any breakage. Yes, I use broth for all the things you mention: in a mug, in soups and stews etc. Cheers! 🙂
Amy says
Hi Megan, my question is regarding the Instant Pot method. I’m wondering what is the reason for the full hour of releasing steam? The steam on mine seems to be gone well within 15-20 minutes or so (if not less).
Megan says
Great, Amy! Then there is no need. When the 6-quart machine is full to the 10 cup line, my IP takes longer to release pressure. But if yours is ready in 20 minutes, that’s great. I like to avoid the “violent” release of so much steam all at once. Thanks for your question. 🙂
Monet says
Wow! What a great read! You consistently answer so many questions with patience and attention (even though many are repeatedly asked) I googled why does my broth taste bitter and found your experience written down. Thanks a million and blessings to you for your help!!
Megan says
Thank you Monet! So kind of you, and you’re welcome! 🙂
Nicole Penner says
Thank you for this article. I’ve been having the worst luck with broths and could not figure out why they keep turning out bitter. Thank you for explaining the problem. Now I understand! My question is: I just made a broth from marrow beef bones from a steer we had butchered. They were frozen fresh. This first broth I made turned bitter. Can I drain that broth and still used the bones without anything left on them for a second try? Also, any ideas on what I could use the bitter broth for? Maybe adding a bunch of herbs and such to hide the bitterness? Would adding wild rice or potatoes help? I really don’t want to have to feed it to the dogs. Please help! Thank you!
-Slice of Heaven Farm- Nicole
Megan says
Hi Nicole! Thanks for your comments and questions! Here’s the post for you!: https://traditionalcookingschool.com/food-preparation/what-to-do-with-bitter-broth/ 🙂 I don’t recommend using your bones again, but you can certainly salvage that original broth as the linked to post explains. Best!
Theresa says
Hi Megan,
This article/recipe was so helpful and took away my hesitation to do this. I have a question though. I am using what our grass fed farmer calls “soup bones”. They have meat and fat on them (I am not sure if they are considered marrow bones). They are out of oxtail which I thought would be a good choice for stock (your thoughts?) so this is what I am using. I make the meat stock in the IP and then when I make a couple batches of bone broth it still has a good fat layer on the top when it cools. Should I not use this because it is rancid? Am I using the wrong type of bones? Is it normal to get fat after the first short process time? Thanks for any help you can give!
Megan says
Hi Theresa, I’m glad the recipe is helpful, and thanks for your questions. Personally, I would keep making meat stocks with the bones, instead of a long cook bone broth for the second batch. It sounds like the meat, fat and bones continue to contribute new fat to the second broth, and I wouldn’t want to boil that for so long. You could also harvest the meat after the second meat stock is made, as it is likely a nice fall-apart meat that will be tender and nice. Yes, I’ve worked with these type bones too, when we buy a whole animal or have a friend who slaughters. This way you’d still get two batches of meat stock for each amount of bones. Let me know if I missed any aspect of your question. Best!
Theresa says
Megan,
Thanks so much for the reply! I am not getting email notifications when you respond so I didn’t see it until now. So, if I understand right, I can go ahead and make 2 batches of meat stock in the IP (won’t be cooked too long?) at 1/2 hour each. Then remove meat and fat that is left clinging to the bones. And use the bones only to make bone broth with the longer cook time.
Just wanted to make sure I got it right.
You are so helpful!!
Megan says
Yes, everything you said sounds right on! After the first batch of meat stock, remove all stock with fat, and all solid fat that’s loose; then make second batch with fresh water and sea salt. Then, if desired, pour off all stock and fat from second batch of meat stock and any remaining fat that’s clinging to bones, and make bone broth with your bones for an optional third round. Depending on your ratio of bones to water, the second or third batches will be more diluted, so you can adjust your bone ratio accordingly. I hope that’s all clear. 🙂 Blessings!
Theresa says
P.S. Just looked and it says the soup bones are a mix of rib, neck and knuckle bones. Thought that might help you with answering my questions 🙂
Susan says
Thanks you so much Megan! Like so many others, I have been making bone broth for the past couple of years & nowhere was the 3 hour stage one mentioned. Sure enough, my broth was tasting bitter. (I was also using vegetables.) I just watched this as I was cooking a fresh batch in my crockpot (just bones & ACV). So glad I found you & added Himalayan sea salt after watching-winner! I harvested the broth after 3 hours and it’s delicious! Now I’m on batch 2.
My question is: I still used the bitter broth I had been making in the past by adjusting seasoning, etc to make it palatable, in soups, etc. My concern is: was that broth harmful, rather than healthy? Thanks, Susan
Megan says
Hi Susan, I’m happy you found this post as well. Great question. Bitter broth is not unhealthy, thankfully. During long cooking, proteases degrade protein chains, making the proteins bitter. The amino acids get detached, but this is not harmful. Blessings to you!
Susan says
Thank you for your response!
Susan
Megan says
Happy to help! 🙂
Emily Arreola says
Somewhere on this blog I saw a mention of how long you can store broth in the fridge, but I can’t find it now. Can you cover again briefly?
Megan says
Sure! Basically, if the broth has a layer of fat over the top, that helps to preserve the broth longer. Without fat, broth lasts about 5 days or up to 7 in the refrigerator. With a thick layer of fat, broth can last up to 6 months in the refrigerator. The fat ensures that no air touches the broth, so it’s important that the fat seals the broth in and isn’t punctured.
Susan says
Hi, I’ve had wonderful success with your crockpot recipe, and am new to IP. How/ when do we remove the scum with IP.
Thanks, Susan:)
Megan says
Hi Susan, great, so glad. After 30 minutes, allow the steam to release naturally, then remove the lid and skim off any scum. I find it often sticks to the sides of the pot. Cheers. 🙂
Thomas says
Such a great point with the 3 hour fat rancidity. Thanks a million!
Megan says
You’re welcome, Thomas. I’m so glad it was helpful!
valerie says
I have read similar information sometime this year or last year. I cannot recall where. Must say, I sure am disappointed to know after cooking broth for a decade that it was not benefiting me and with so many others that I have shared. All of the effort and money into broth that according to this information was essentially doing damage and not benefit because the fat was making it rancid. Pretty painful information. However, I will do better now that I know better. My broth has never tasted rancid, or bitter. I don’t know if that is because I used herbs and vegetables as well. I have always received many compliments on how good the broth tastes to others who have had it as well. As a matter of fact, I’ve turned orders away since Covid-19 so I can have availability for my family in the shortage of pastuered bones online. Thanks for the information. Here is hoping that this way will be beneficial and not a waste as the last ten years have been. Thanks for sharing.
Megan says
Hi Valerie, I love that your broth has tasted so good. That’s surely a consolation. Thanks for your comment, and I hope you have an even greater enjoyment making broth going forward. Best wishes!
Sarah says
Before reading your article I purchased beef knuckle bones (grass fed and finished) from a local farmer. I just thawed them to try making bone broth for the first time. There is a lot of fat surrounding the bones. Do I need to try to trim all that off so that my broth is not TOO fatty? And do you throw out any bits of meat after making the broth? Would it be good to eat or will it be drained of anything beneficial?
Megan says
Hi Sarah, great questions! You don’t need to trim off any of the fat (unless you want to), but a lot of it will render into the broth. So you’ll have either: a VERY high fat meat stock after the first cooking (2-3 hours simmering, or 30 minutes in the Instant Pot), OR you’ll need to skim all of it off with a ladle. Either way, that rendered tallow will be great for brief cooking uses later on. You can store it in the fridge and use it to sauté etc. If you harvest the whole meat stock, the fat will solidify in the fridge on top of the meat stock, and same thing: you can use most of it for cooking, and drink or use the meat stock separately. I find it’s always nice to have extra rendered fat around to cook with, because it’s pricey to buy and great to use. The meat around the knuckles is delicious and perfect for eating after the first slow cooking or 30 minutes in the IP. It falls apart and is succulent! 🙂 Lastly, any fat that’s still on your bones that hasn’t rendered after the meat stock stage does need to be removed at that point, before you continue cooking the bones to create the bone broth. You can remove the bones to cool, take off the meat and fat, discard the solid fat that remains (unless you want to use it in another way), (eat the meat) and return the bones to the pot.
Sarah says
Thank you so much! I used your Instant-Pot directions have have six quarts of gorgeous meat and bone broth chilling in my fridge. I bought those bones in January and kept them in my freezer, equally excited and intimidated to try making my own bone broth! I finally got over the intimidation today and am so excited with the results. I just had one more question: I read a bunch of articles in preparation and a couple of people mentioned that their bones were literally falling apart when they were done. My bones were definitely still solid. Does this mean I did not extract enough out of them? The broth is just beginning to be chilled enough to tell that it is gelling up nicely so there must be plenty of good collagen and gelatin in there but I don’t want to waste any goodness so, for next time…should I fire up the instant pot again if the bones are still solid after the two hours at pressure (and one hour coming down) and let them go for longer? I really appreciate your help!
Megan says
Happy to help! It depends to some extent how big your bones are, and if the marrow is exposed. But, as a rule, longer is not better. In fact, gelatin starts to break down after two hours in the Instant Pot on high pressure, and the flavor is less good after 2 hours as well. However, if you want to go for all the collagen and amino acids and your bones are not cut to reveal the marrow, you can definitely harvest the bone broth when you did and then add water and sea salt one final time to create a third batch (the first batch being the 30 minute meat stock). Your third batch may not gel, but you’ll have protein and collagen. For flavor, you can combine your first and third batches or amend the broth with fermented fish sauce, fresh herbs, grated ginger or use in soups.
Emily says
Hi! I understand how to make chicken broth using bones from already-roasted chickens based on your recipe here (and have been enjoying it for a few years now), but I am wondering about what to do to avoid rancid fat but be sure everything is cooked enough if I am boiling a whole, RAW chicken. I had read previously elsewhere that you need to simmer the raw chicken for 8 hours in order to cook it sufficiently, and I am wondering about the fat in that scenario. In the case of already cooked bones, that fat has technically been cooked once in the roasting process, so the three hours you mention here would be in addition to already being cooked during roasting. Since the fat in the case of the raw chicken hasn’t yet been cooked, would it take longer to go rancid during the simmer? Do you think it is safe to harvest the fat or meat stock after the raw chicken has only simmered 3 hours? Or would you cook it all for the whole 8 hours in that scenario?
Also, what if we start with a whole, raw, FROZEN chicken? I used to just put a whole frozen chicken into my pot of water to cook, but I have been afraid to ever since I read your post a few years ago, and decided maybe it’s time I finally ask to see what modifications I need to make to do it safely both for not overcooking the fat but not under-cooking the chicken and broth. Thank you!
Megan says
Hi Emily, yes, it is safe to harvest the stock after 3 hours. Where did you read about cooking a raw chicken for 8 hours? Regarding frozen chicken, if you have a probe thermometer, the safest thing is to insert it into the thigh after cooking for 3 hours and see what the internal temperature is, but even a frozen chicken will be well-cooked after that time period if you start timing from when the water simmers. You want the thermometer to reach 165 F or 170 F. Thanks and blessings!
Emily says
Thank you!
Maybe my thought of 8 hours came from a misreading/misremembering of Nourishing Traditions, where, as I just re-read, it says to cook chicken stock for 6-24 hours, where longer is more rich and flavorful. I may have just assumed the 6 hours was necessary for safety.
I really appreciate your response!
Megan says
No problem and happy to help, Emily! 🙂
Laurie says
Friends have suggested that beef bones should be roasted in the oven (for better flavor) before cooking them in an instapot. What are your thoughts on this?
Megan says
Hi Laurie, If the bones do not have fat, you can try it and see if you like the difference. I don’t do it personally. I like the bones as-is and don’t prefer the extra step. As long as the broth is made with the right amount of sea salt, I think it’s delicious and complete without roasting. (If the bones are fatty, then the fat could oxidize and become rancid from over-cooking, if also boiled to make broth.) Thanks for the question. 🙂
Tyler says
Hi there!
What is the reason for letting it natural release for a minimum of an hour each time?
Megan says
Hi Tyler, thanks for the question. Directly after cooking, the Instant Pot is very full of hot simmering broth, and the pressure is built up. If you do a Quick Pressure Release directly at this point, the broth comes out of the steam hole and sputters (violently), while the steam also bursts out (violently). (LOL) It’s quite the show. So, basically, it’s not safe. By waiting one hour, the pressure releases slowly on its own. If you need to release the steam sooner because you’re pressed for time, you could probably safely open the steam valve after 40 or so minutes, just using caution, because a lot of steam will still release.
Gabriel says
Hi! Thank for this post.
I have larger quantities of bones and want to cook them up all at once.
I also don’t have a large stockpot,
Could I fill the pot with bones (6-9 lbs) and add as much water as fits, or does it require specifically 1.5 gallons per 3 lbs of bones?
Thanks in advance.
Pam Gabriele says
I am curious to know if you have tried to make bouillon, after the final cooking & removal of the bones?
I thought it would be a great way to stock up for the winter & have it readily available to make soup, gravy, etc. Also, to have a dried option on hand in case of weather related events, power outages, etc. that would be easily transportable.
Thank you!
Pam
Pam says
I am curious to know if you have tried to make bouillon, after the final cooking & removal of the bones?
I thought it would be a great way to stock up for the winter & have it readily available to make soup, gravy, etc. Also, to have a dried option on hand in case of weather related events, power outages, etc. that would be easily transportable.
Thank you!
Pam
Megan says
Hi Pam, I’m sorry I saw your question late. Yes! I dehydrate broth in my powerful dehydrator. I end up with sheets of broth, which I place in the fridge in a mason jar to be on the safe side. They almost instantly dissolve in water to create broth. I simply pour my meat stock or bone broth onto cookie sheets and dehydrate for over 24 hours, until fully dry. Pretty cool. I haven’t tried to powder mine, and I’m not sure it would work with what I have.
laura babai says
Thanks for the information have been cooking bone broth for a few years, always about 8-12 hours and always with veggies. Will try your method. In Israel we can’t get chicken feet, it seems they are all sold to China. and will stop roasting the bone marrow/
Question: How do you use the fat afterwards? How to you store it? In the freezer?. Up to now I have always chilled my broth, and then threw away the fat and then stored the broth in a silicon cupcake case in the freezer and then put them in a bag in the freezer. great site and great information, thanks a lot. Laura
Megan says
Hi Laura, thank you for your kind words and great questions. I’m sorry for the delay in responding! I simply put the fat in the fridge in a mason jar with lid. I use a spoon to scoop it out as needed for cooking purposes.
laura babai says
thanks will give it a go.
Christina says
Thank you for this helpful post! I have frozen beef marrow bones. Can I put the frozen bones directly into the instant pot and follow your instructions from there for the stock (30 minutes) and then broth (90 minutes) or would cook time increase? Also, should I blanch and roast the bones prior to placing in the instant pot? Please advise.
Megan says
Hi Christina, you’re welcome! 🙂 You can definitely put frozen bones directly into the IP, with usual cooking times. No, do not blanch or roast the bones prior to cooking in the Instant Pot, unless you want to! For example, if you expect a lot of scum to come off of your bones (as often happens with pork bones, you could blanch, skim and then cook. But you can also skim off the scum after the 30 minute cooking. The roasting will pre-cook the fat, if there is any, which means it will cook for too long and cause rancidity once simmered. But if you have bones without fat and want the flavor of roasted bones, then you can. I do not do either.
Jorf says
Is it okay to just take the fat out once the broth has cooled and the fat solids sit on top?
Megan says
Hi Jorf, definitely! As long as it’s a short-cooked meat stock that you’re chilling. You just don’t want to long-cook broth before removing the fat.
Eleanora says
Thanks so much for this. I’ve been cooking bone broth wrong for the last 5 years. My husband always said it smelled like a reduction factory in our house when I was simmering the bones (and fat) for hours & hours. Now that I pour off the “stock/skim the fat” after 2-3 hours and then recover the bones in fresh water & cook in the crock pot to make bone broth, the “bad” smell has pretty much disappeared. One question, the beef bones I’m using are listed as “organic grass fed and legume finished”. Does this sound okay?
Megan says
Hi Eleanora, great to hear, and thanks for sharing! So glad! Legume finished does not sound ideal, as that likely indicates soy, and ideally we want grass-finished. (You could ask the company, if possible.) You may try to find a local farm that grass-finishes or consider ordering from U.S. Wellness Meats (https://grasslandbeef.com/bones) although they are very expensive. Other options include wild game bones (for free if you know a hunter). Just do the best you can, but sometimes looking around, you can find better than what it sounds like you currently have. Nonetheless, eat without guilt or fear once you’ve sourced the best you can. 🙂
Eleanora says
Thanks so much Megan. Off I go to find all grass fed/organic bones 😉
Linda says
This is a very good article, thank you for sharing, there are not many such articles in this field.
Sana says
Hello Megan,
This was such a useful blog. Very detailed and informative. Thank you.
I make lamb (sometimes goat) trotters soup (or paya, a South Asian dish) and there’s a good amount of fat that is rendered. Previously, I would just throw the fat away after cooking the trotters in the IP for about 2 hours… but started hearing from other sources that it’s good for health and that’s what led me to this article. Here are my questions:
1. Is it really good for gut health if removed at the right time? Or beneficial in other ways?
2. Please explain how I can use this fat? Can I harvest it, and then add it back to my dish right at the end of the entire cooking process and serve? 3. What other ways are there to consume this fat? Because I don’t want to cook it again, correct?
Looking forward to your reply ?
Megan says
Hi Sana, thanks for your questions. As long as your animals were grass-finished, or fed a diet natural to them, then their fat is healthy to consume, for most people. Yes, you can harvest the fat, as you said, and then add it back to your finished dish, which makes it more flavorful and satisfying, as well as adding good fats. You may also use it in cooking anything briefly, for example, sautéing vegetables or meats. Any short cooking or lower temperature cooking that isn’t long is fine. 🙂
Gretchan Jackson says
How cleaned do you need the bones for the bone broth, post meat broth? Can you add in the chicken feet or trotters with everything still attached? Thanks! Great post.
Megan says
Hi Gretchan, you just don’t want any fatty bits or too much meat. Everything else, meaning connective tissues, are good to keep on. You’re welcome. 🙂
Gretchan Jackson says
Thank you, Megan! Invaluable.
Megan says
You’re welcome, Gretchan! Thank you, and I’m so glad!
Valerie says
Hi Megan. When using the IP to make broth should the soup and manual functions be on high pressure or low pressure?
Dleo says
Hi I was curious if you wanted to add some dried nettles as you recommend, how much do you put into the broth to steep?
Megan says
Hi David, good question. I use 1 Tablespoon of dried nettles for every 8 ounces of broth, for the maximum amount of minerals, or half that much for a less pronounced inclusion. This provides about 10-15% of the daily recommended intake for iron and 35-40% for calcium, not to mention about 5% of the body’s magnesium needs (depending on the person), other minerals and over 300% of the body’s Vitamin K needs (as well as other vitamins).
David says
Hi. Awesome thanks so much. Oops I should have clarified I make the broth in the 6 quart Instant pot. Which doesnt make exactly 6 quarts. But will measure how much water I put it. Thanks much
Megan says
You’re welcome! 🙂
S.A. says
Hello,
It’s been 7 years and you’re still getting comments on this article! Thank you for your contribution.
I have been racking my brains about this and finally decided to just ask you. When you say 2-3 hours, is that starting with turning the crockpot on, or 2-3 hours of active simmering? I use the low setting on my slowcooker, and after 3 hours it isn’t even bubbling at all, and there are barely a few dots of fat rather than a whole layer. I think this happens because I’m judging the liquid before it has cooled down, or there isn’t much fat in the bones I used.
So should I wait for the liquid to actually reach a simmer before starting to time the “2-3 hours”?
Also, if I wait for it to cool down and still don’t see any fat, does that technically mean I have no reason to harvest the broth and can just continue for 24 hours?
Thank you for replying!
Megan says
Hi and you’re welcome. Happy to help. 🙂 Start the clock, so to speak, after the water begins simmering. Once it simmers, cook for 2 to 3 hours. You may need to do a test run for the total time with your slow-cooker, but it sounds like 5 hours will be about right, and then likely you’ll have the fat on top that you also asked about. Remove it at this point, and now go 24 more hours. I hope that fully answers your questions! 🙂
Ranna says
Dear Megan,
ive just finished preparing my first ever batch of bone broth (8-10 hour boil – without removing any fat) came across your page about rancid fat, im worried whether i should throw it away and start again or if its safe to consume?, please get back to me.
Megan says
Hi Ranna, I’m sorry. Personally, I would compost it. But it’s a personal decision. Otherwise, you’ll know for the future. 🙂
ranna says
yes, i thought so, thanks for getting back to me, all the best.
Megan says
You’re welcome, great. 🙂
Tessa says
Thank you SO much for this helpful post! Can you clarify about the fatty meat stock- is it okay to drink that straight from a cup even though it’s so fatty? I made it from a chicken carcass and chicken feet and harvested it after 3 hours. It had a fantastic gel and was very rich. We enjoyed drinking it straight from the cup. I’m about to make more with beef bones this time, and am confused about the marrow that the meat stock will have. Should that not be drunk? If not, Will it rise to the top so I can get it out? Is it okay/beneficial to drink really fatty broth?
Megan says
Hi Tessa, you’re welcome! 🙂 The high fat content is subject to your unique health. In general, the functional medicine view on consuming generous amounts of animal fat from pasture-raised animals is that it’s safe, ideal and healthy. I enjoy it very much and find it like you did, rich and flavorful with the stock. I’m glad you enjoyed yours! Re the marrow, it is actually solid, a very soft palatable fat that is considered a gourmet treat. Yes, it floats, and you can spoon it out with a colander and consume it. To further support the digestion of fat, you can use digestive bitters if you wish, which is what I do with all my meals. (These are the bitters I make if you’d like to read more about the idea: https://eatbeautiful.net/how-make-2-ingredient-digestive-bitters/) A final note on if it’s healthy to drink fatty broth, some diets are built on increasing animal fat consumption on purpose, like the GAPS diet which aims to rebuild the gut lining. Certainly for some individuals it is very healthy accordingly, but the animal does need to be raised and finished on grass or sprouted “clean” grain; otherwise, their fat is only as healthy as what they eat because fat stores toxins. Long chain fatty acids are the primary fats found in animal fat. Long-chain fatty acids are key components of biological membranes throughout the body, a basic structure in every living organism, separating the inside of a cell from the outside. The brain is primarily made up of fats. Fats are also required for the transport of cholesterol, as well as eye and skin health, cell repair (as mentioned) and signaling, body temperature regulation, hormone balancing and blood sugar regulation. When we eat healthy saturated fat from pasture-raised animals, we are supporting these systems and also supporting the absorption of fat soluble vitamins. I hope that helps!
Debra Papworth says
Hi Megan,
I apologize if you are repeating yourself. I simmered my marrow bones for 3 hours, tipped all of the broth off into a container and refrigerated, refilled pot and we’re off again, when cool i will take fat off. I will mix the two broths together for a tasty nutritious broth. The first lot of broth you have mentioned should be gelatinous? Mine is not 🙁 Should my first lot of broth be gelatinous: i have the second lot still simmering and hoping they will be gelatinous.
Megan says
Hi Debra, what you said sounds correct. If your first batch of broth (meat stock) is not gelatinous, this means you need to increase your ratio (next time) of bones to water. More bones or less water will create a gelatinous broth. Sounds like you had too few bones. I hope that helps and makes the difference! 🙂
Debra Papworth says
i have another question please.
We do the two boils/simmers to ensure the fat is not simmering away for an extended period of time risking it becoming rancid?
i have now made two batches based on your instructions.
The first simmer is when i tip the stock off and refrigerate – at this stage i get fat which has hardened at the top of the stock, i am able to easily remove this, then refill stock pot, add more salt and ACV, bring to the boil on top of my AGA once it is to boiling point i place the covered pot into my simmering oven for 48 hours. Again after this time i tip the stock/broth off and refrigerate and again i get more fat which can be taken off. Isn’t the point of doing the two simmer not to be cooking fat for an extended period?
Megan says
Hi Debra, I’m not sure I understand your question. Can you phrase your question in one sentence so I’m sure to understand? But yes, we do not want to simmer the fat for an extended period of time.
Debra Papworth says
It is my understanding the goal of the first simmer is to rid the stock of the fat so it does not become rancid when simmering for extended periods, however, i still have fat on the second extended simmer, am i not at risk of this becoming rancid?
Megan says
Hi Debra, good question. It’s best to skim this off as well, as you go, to the extent that you can. If it’s just a little bit, just do what you can. If you’re at all worried about it, you can also chill the finished product and any fat will congeal on the surface, where it can easily be removed.
Hannah says
Hi Megan,
Bone broth is an age-old meal/recipe that has been cooked up a couple of thousand years. I also grew up on it, my mum would cook it and keep the fat on and store the bone broth or meat stock in the fridge. From what I read in your blog, my family is and have been consuming rancid fat and bone broth for years. I trust you as a source as you had a bone broth store, but as you said, you learned a lot along the way. I’m wondering where you learned that the fat becomes rancid? Do you have any journals or other research to show this? I don’t happen to find much information about this online, aside from other food blogs that mention it rancid fat offhandedly without any hard data or information about it.
I hate to think I’m essentially poisoning myself, but yet I don’t dare throw out the bone broth and tallow I’ve spent so long cooking.
Thanks for your post! I love learning about the benefits of bone broth. I just hope I’m cooking it correctly.
Megan says
Hi Hannah, I understand your concern, and thanks for your question. I originally learned about this concept from Dr. Campbell-McBride who created the GAPS diet. Unfortunately, there aren’t yet studies measuring how much oxidation occurs in the fat rendered while making bone broth. But, we can apply what we know about fats oxidizing or breaking at higher temperatures after prolonged periods. Here’s a quote from a study: “The effect of oxygen concentration on the oxidation of oil increased at high temperature…” The same is true for long cooking when exposed to air as discussed below. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1541-4337.2006.00009.x Another study shows, “rapid increase in beef tallow” in regard to its thermooxidative stability when frying. https://www.koreascience.or.kr/article/JAKO199803042070685.pdf. In regard to fats breaking down in water: “The technical term for fat breakdown is hydrolysis, which is the chemical reaction of a substance with water. In this process, fatty acids are separated from their glycerol molecules and accumulate over time in the fat. When their concentration reaches a certain point, the fat takes on an unpleasant taste, and continued use of the fat will yield a nasty flavour.” https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/ingredients/chapter/understanding-fats-and-oils/ Here are some other studies that may be helpful:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7633572/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15685941/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9626489/
The off-flavor that’s so often mentioned is what I noticed myself after reading Dr. Natasha’s warning on the topic. I didn’t notice it until I learned about rancidity.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18967717/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11297289/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11297289/
I hope these are helpful. From these and others, we can glean that especially when using bones from animals with a higher polyunsaturated fat content (like chicken), damage to the fats does occur. Even when using beef bones, the long cooking causes the fats to oxidize. This is especially true because the fat rises to the top of the broth and spends hours (or days) exposed to oxygen and heat.
Vicki says
I’ve been interested in learning to make bone broth since we butcher beef and have read several articles/recipes. Something I’m concerned about in regards to rancid fat…does this also mean that when we cook a beef roast or chicken all day on low heat in a crockpot, we are creating rancid fats? Also, I am confused about your use of the term “boil”. I thought bone broth was made by slow cooking/simmering for many hours, not boiled. Simmering and boiling are not the same. I thought in one of your responses, you said the issue was with the fat boiling, and in another response, you said that it was an issue with both high and low heat. I also don’t see how I could possibly know for sure that I have removed all the fat after that first 2-3 hour session. I thought this would be something simple I could do for my health and my family, but now I am overwhelmed. Also, since our beef is grass fed but grain finished, I’m guessing it’s not safe to use at all. Thanks for your reply regarding the fat removal and rancidity.
Megan says
Hi Vicki, yes, if a chicken is actually simmering (slow bubbles) all day, that will indeed create rancid fat. With removing all the fat, we just do the best we can. A little bit left is just life. Our bodies can process and detox small amounts. We just want to reduce the burden, and not to add stress about it. 🙂 One great thing to do when needing to finish cows on grain is to add a probiotic to it, which helps it to break down (ferment). Our raw milk farmer does this when her pastures dry up. We also have friends who sprout their grain, which works really well for them. They’ve created an easy system. You could look into both of these methods so your grain fed cows have extra healthy meat and bones. 🙂
Vicki says
Thanks for the reply, I did not know about the probiotic supplement as an option. I am somewhat stressed about the fact that cooking meat all day in a crockpot could be unhealthy, as I have been doing it for years. My husband also sometimes smokes meat. But now that I think about it, low setting on a slow-cooker isn’t even really simmering (not actually slow cooking anything at the moment to look at), so maybe it’s okay, I don’t know. I much prefer slow cooking meat rather than using the Instant Pot, as it seems much more tender. I appreciate you taking the time to reply.
Megan says
Yes, perhaps that extra low setting is fine. Definitely no stress for the past, and then you can use your intuition, too. Happy to help, and I hope the probiotic is something that works well for you. Let me know if you want me to ask our raw milk farmer what they use.
Vicki says
I did some quick research on meat fat rancidity and it seems like any slow cooking process of meat that contains any fat (which is what gives it flavor and tenderness) is a bad idea. This makes me so frustrated, as slow cooking meat like roasts and chicken is one of my favorite ways to prepare meat and I thought it was a healthy cooking method. Also, something I read indicated to me that it’s good to consume meat fat along with the muscle. So does this mean that roasting, frying, and grilling is the only safe way to prepare meats to avoid rancidity? Also, I read that reheating previously cooked meat increases it. What are we supposed to do with leftover cooked meat. This is really causing me a lot of distress, as meat from our ranch is one of the ways we save money feeding our family.
Megan says
Low stress with food is super important, so I do think there’s a lot to be said for choosing the best you can with whole foods and old fashioned methods, and then having peace about it, and enjoying eating. This is not woo woo; our mindset really does matter. Give thanks with joy after you’ve prepared food. I am personally not concerned about slow cooking over low heat because I can taste when fat has gone rancid. I do, however, avoid smoked meats and other smoked foods, as I don’t believe they are healthful. Re meat and fat being eaten and prepared together, no, this does not mean that roasting, frying and grilling are healthier; in fact they are not. The healthiest gentlest meat to eat is cooked in a stew. Leftover cooked meat is fine! 🙂 Sounds to me like most of your cooking processes are gentle and good. And if your husband only smokes meat occasionally, that’s good, too.
Vicki says
Thank you so much. I do have a lot of stress surrounding safe and healthy eating, as it seems like every time I turn around, I’m reading about something new I didn’t know I needed to be concerned about. I appreciate your response!
Megan says
So glad it’s helpful. You’re doing so much right! 🙂
Dorothy says
This article is so helpful. I’m been making bone broth off and on for years, but partly guessing about the details, such as the cooking time and number of batches, and I didn’t realize that I needed to avoid rancid fats. This gives me all I need to know to go forward to make delicious, nutritious broth. Thank you.
Megan says
You’re welcome, Dorothy, and I’m so glad! 🙂
Megan Janes says
Hi Megan!
Thanks for the in-depth article! All of the other bone broth articles I’ve read have been very vague! I’ve always read to blanch the bones first, drain/skim off the scum/fat, then roast the bones, then slow cook them for 24-48 hours, cool and store. Have you ever heard of blanching the bones first? Is that necessary?
Of course I find your article literally minutes after I’ve made a batch of bone broth! I always give bone broth to my babies as their first “food,” and now I don’t want to give it to him since I made it the traditional way I mentioned above! Mine is chilling in the fridge now. Should I remove the fat layer at the top? Would that make it healthy again? Ha! I don’t want to waste what I’ve already made, but also don’t want to give him an unhealthy broth!
Thanks for the info!
Megan says
Hi Megan, thanks for your comments and questions! I would just skim off the fat from your batch, discard it, and enjoy that batch. In the future, the methods you describe are, in my opinion, too many steps for a lesser quality end product where the fat still cooks for too long. The blanching step is used to remove initial “impurities” in the bones, but they will still be/are present after the 30 minute cook also, as scum, and can be discarded either way. Naturally, we are not drawn toward eating the foamy dry debris that gathers around the edges of the pot. The fat after the 30 minute cook, on the other hand, is good to remove and keep for other uses. I hope that helps!
Emily says
Hello! Thank you for this article! I have a couple questions. I try removing the fat with a ladle after the soup setting on the Instant Pot is over, however I’m just not able to get it all the fat it seems. After I do this, I put the bones on the pressurized setting for a few hours, and when that’s finished, there seems to be a ton more fat that has accumulated at the top, lol! So, after straining, I put my bone broth in the refrigerator and once cooled, I remove the hardened layer of fat that is near the top and discard it (but I keep the original layer of fat I had removed with the ladle to use in cooking). My question is once putting my bone broth in the refrigerator, is it ok if I remove the hardened fat layer at the top and discard it (since I’m seemingly not able to remove all of it after the soup setting you suggested)? My concern is, since you said this fat can be rancid, that it will be negatively affecting the rest of my bone broth. Thanks for any suggestions?
Megan says
Hi Emily, great questions. I know how it is trying to ladle all that fat off the top and get every last bit of it. What I would do after that, for your second cook, is to do 30 more minutes on high pressure, and then skim again, or chill and scrape off the hardened fat, instead of doing a few hours for the second batch. I personally would be a little concerned about the rancid fat simmering with the broth, and I know from personal experience that it does affect the taste of the broth, which says a lot. The other option is to find bones with less fat, so your next longer batch can cook for longer without rendering so much fat. I hope that helps! Either way, good for you to discard that second batch’s fat.
Mary says
I have just strained my beef marrow bone broth and its so bitter. This isn’t my first broth but this one is the first to be bitter. I boiled and descummed then roasted the bones for 40. mins and poured all that including liquid fat/marrow from the baking sheet into the instapot for 140 mins. I did not add salt, just vinegar and some shallots, celery, shiitake mushrooms, a carrot and a reishi mushroom.
My query is – since my broth’s obviously rancid fat is unhealthy – after I cool and skim it off into the compost bucket wouldn’t my broth still be toxic? Should I give the bones another turn in the instapot?
Will my Great Dane ever forgive me for wasting 2.4kg of marrow bones?
Megan says
Hi Mary, it doesn’t sound like your broth method follows this recipe, so maybe that’s the problem behind your questions, from what I can gauge. I would compost the broth, and if you wish, give the bones another turn but in sea-salted water. Cute about the pup! 😉 And sorry for the waste! Now you’ll know for future.
Candace says
Hi, thanks for the recipe! Could you please confirm the timings for Instant Pot. It says to boil the bones for 2-3 hours to collect the first lot of meat stock (which you refrigerate and remove fat), how long is this first process in the Instant Pot? As it just says 90-120 minutes in Instant Pot for 2nd and 3rd step so wasn’t sure about the first? Thanks so much!!
Megan says
Hi Candace, just 30 minutes for the first round, meat stock. Then 2 hours for the second batch, bone broth. 🙂
Candace says
Thank you so much! Just one other question, I read an article recently that said it’s not good to cook bone broth in an Instant Pot because you can lose a lot of the goodness/minerals etc due to the high heat. Do you believe this? I’d love to know your thoughts as an IP is more convenient for me due to the time saving. But if you think it’s better the other ways I’d love to know. ?
Megan says
Hi Candace, the first clue that that info is not reliable is that bone broth is not actually high in minerals at all. That was misinformation parroted for years before bone broth was actually tested and found to be very low in minerals. The IP is a good gentle way of cooking the bones, extracting gelatin and collagen and controlling all of the variables. Yes, plus so convenient and time saving! I think it’s the best method, too, because it reduces oxidation of fats, which can happen with long cooking over a stove top. 🙂
Dora says
Hi, I‘m not sure I understand how this works with the instant pot. Are you saying I have to time it 2h then depressurize, skim the fat, and l then put it on another 2h?
I usually do 2h on high and then 2h on low pressure for the gelatin.
Can I just skim the fat cold after the 4h Thank you!
Megan says
Hi Dora, it does need to be skimmed after the 2 hours on high, and then you could proceed with the final 2 hours on low pressure. So yes, you’ll need to depressurize between.
Diane Harrell says
Hi Megan,
after seeing your video and coming to this page, I still have a question. I first read about 25% of the comments to see if anyone else had this question…but there are soooo many comments I don’t have time to read them all. You are (deservedly) a popular gal! So to my question, I do a cooktop slow cook for usually 72 hours, then strain and cool the broth to remove any fat. I then reheat and pressure can it. Are you saying that the rancid fat cannot be properly removed using my technique, and that the fat must be removed in the first 2-3 hours? Looking forward to your wisdom…Diane
Megan says
Hi Diane, yes, exactly. 🙂 After your cooktop version reaches a slow simmer, time 2-3 hours, then remove any fat from the surface. Then, the rest of your process sounds good.
Diane says
So to clarify, the broth I have been canning (even though visible fat was removed after 72 hours) still has rancid fat incorporated in it?
Megan says
Free fatty acids are very small, so I would think so.
Diane says
Thanks again for your feedback. My older batches were 90% leftover bones (for true bone broths), so hardly any meat or fat, so I think I’m okay there. I will definitely watch for and skim fat early on when doing meat/fat blends for savory broths. Always more to learn!
Diane
Megan says
Sounds great, Diane! 🙂
Jackie Walker says
Hi,
First time making bone broth. I broiled the bones on each side for 5 mins to add flavor. Is doing this not recommended in your opinion? Put the bones in with only salt and the water recommended in the crock pot. I tried to scrap off scum with a mesh strainer but there wasn’t much? I did this at about an hour in. Too late? I put them on the crock pot on low? For the first batch for meat broth, is I better on high? Should I see it simmering as well? First time using the crock pot as well so I’m just new to all this. Will scum really come to the top the first 30 minutes within heating up?
Megan says
Hi Jackie, correct, I would not broil the bones. Low or high heat is less important than creating a simmer; so whichever gets it to and maintains a steady simmer. No, a crock pot will not create a simmer in 30 minutes; that’s for stove top. A crock pot will take a lot longer. After the simmer starts, that’s when you time from, for collecting scum and the 2 hour cook time.
Jackie says
Thanks so much for the response! I think the last time I made the broth I didn’t wait for it to simmer and this time around I did. I don’t particularly love the taste of beef bones. So this second time drinking the beef broth I can’t tell I did it wrong I just don’t love the taste. Besides the fact this time around on the second summer for the bone broth, the bones I get there is a little bit of fat and meat left on the bones. Should I remove the fat and any left over meat? I feel like my bone broth now has rancid fat? Thanks for much for getting back to me!
Megan says
Any meat or fat that cooks for 30 minutes should be removed at that point. You’re welcome, happy to help!
Jackie says
Sorry to keep reaching out. So once I get my bones in crock pot to simmer for the first time (meat broth) the first 30 min of that simmer I should remove the fat and meat that’s left on the bone? And then for the bone broth it should only be bones? No fat no meat?
Because the bone broth that I just harvested has a ton of fat on top! Which would be rancid at this point because I left the fat and meat on for 24 hours?
Megan says
Yes, to all those questions. 🙂
RUSSELL PASCATORE says
Can’t I take off the rancid fat after I cool the broth and the fat solidifies at the top of the liquid? Also the scum goes to the bottom. Is it ok to stir it in to the gel/clear broth? I make long cooked broth with deer bones.
Megan says
Yes, you can, but the rancidity will have cooked throughout the broth for the duration of the cooking time. The scum is best removed. I used to do long cooking as well, and this can still work if you use the lowest heat, skim off the fat and also the scum. I would not stir the scum in.
RUSSELL PASCATORE says
Hi again. Also I make the deer bone broth in a large electric roaster on setting about 200F so it doesn’t even simmer. Would this slow(48hour) low heat cook make rancid fat?
Megan says
Hi, good question. The heat temp is good, but oxidation can still occur. I’d still skim the fat within 2 hours of it appearing on top.
Amy says
Wow – I have been doing it all wrong! I am so glad I happened upon your site. Thank you thank you thank you!!! I just made my first batch! The biggest perk so far was how much it made! Before I was just cooking water to death in my crock pot for 24-36 hours and yielding very little because so much had evaporated. This time I used my IP and went through both steps so I have half and half. I filled about 15 quarts! I have a question (forgive me if it’s already been asked and answered): can I reuse the bones for more than one batch? I have read that bones can be used over and over until they turn soft (can’t remember the source). What are your thoughts on that?
Megan says
Hi Amy, so happy for you, and thank you for sharing your feedback and enthusiasm! 🙂 YAY! So glad for your big yield of 15 quarts! While you can re-use your bones, the final batch (bones can be used for 3 batches total in my experience and with this method: 1. meat stock 2. bone broth 3. bone broth) will yield some protein but have less flavor and a less good flavor. At this point, I prefer to compost the bones. That being said, if you really need to be frugal, you certainly can go one more time! And by doing one more batch this time, it may allow you to see what you personally prefer for the future.
Danielle Blank says
Hello Megan,
I am making beef bone broth today, using your instructions for the instant pot – I love that I can use the bones twice!! But I was perplexed after the first cook time. After I harvested the meat stock, the bones and cartilage were not bare, they still had some meat and fat clinging to them and I didn’t know if I should meticulously take all of that off before the second cook time? It was hard to distinguish the fat from the cartilage, and I didn’t want to lose nutrients in the second cook time, so I just threw it all together again for the long session. Based on your instructions it didn’t sound like it was necessary to pick at the bones to meticulously get ALL the fat off, but I’m interested to hear your take. It seems like if it was very important to only have the bare bones in the pot for the long cook, you wouldn’t recommend simply ladling out the fat from the top and turning on the heat again, but I’m open to correction. I’m very interested in your response! Thank you for the detailed information in this article!
Danielle
Megan says
Hi Danielle, what you did was fine. 🙂 If you notice in the future that the 2 hour bone broth does taste of rancid fat, or you’re concerned about it, then it would be a tiresome process of stopping the IP more often, or at least one more time midway (and having to wait for the NPR) to remove the rendered fat. Hopefully a lot of that was cartilage, or the fat took longer in the 2 hour cook to render, and wasn’t simmering away too much. In a pot on the stove, it would be easier to harvest liquefied fat more often, as needed. Did your 2 hour bone broth, especially after being refrigerated, end up being very fatty, or was there just a little? That will be a good indicator, too.
Emma says
Hi. I’m hoping to start using this recipe. I notice the IP option is based on a larger size IP than mine, so i can’t get as many bones or water in, could you give me an idea of how much water & salt per 500g of bones please (I’m in UK so use metric ????) that way I can adjust for my IP and adjust for the amount of bones I have. Will using less have much impact on cooking time? Thanks
Megan says
Hi Emma, it looks like you’re using about 1/3 the amount of bones called for in the recipe. This puts your salt at 9 grams and your water will be between 1.25 and 1.67 pints. Same cooking time.
Jane says
Hi! Thanks so much for this post. Super informative. I have a quick question: I let my bone broth simmer on low overnight. When I woke up, it had reduced significantly, so that several of the bones were at least half exposed and not covered in liquid. Is this safe to eat? Should I continue the process? How can I avoid this in the future? Thanks again!
Megan says
Hi Jane, the article and recipe mention adding water as needed for long cooks to compensate for evaporation. The broth is still safe, yes. Overnight cooking is complicated and not ideal for this reason, but there’s no harm in just adding the water back at this point. So yes, continue the process. In the future, I would avoid overnight cooking. Best!
Carmina says
Thank you for sharing with all of us your in depth explanation and your personal tips! I made my first batch in an instant pot, following your recipe and turn out perfectly!!! Much appreciation , and looking forward to try more recipes from you !
Megan says
Excellent, Carmina, so great to hear! Thanks for sharing, and I’m so glad the recipe is a helpful new enjoyable one for you! 🙂
Sheena says
Hi. Thank you for this recipe. I’m making my seven month old broth which I will use to make her food. I need all the fat and nutrients as she is in the zero percentile for weight and height. I obviously can’t use salt. Is it an issue if I make this without salt?
Megan says
Hi Sheena, you can absolutely make it without salt. I’d also point you to Meat Stock, which is even gentler and easier to digest and considered more nourishing by some: https://eatbeautiful.net/homemade-fastest-meat-stock-recipe-15-minutes/
Rachel says
How long does it last in the fridge and the freezer?
Megan says
Hi Rachel, Months in the fridge, IF it has a layer of fat that seals the broth beneath it, and you don’t break that top. Otherwise, about 5 days. In the freezer, about 3 months for best flavor.
Rachel says
Since you want to avoid overcooking the fat to prevent it from going rancid what’s your take on tallow? I am not sure if you are familiar with the process but render the fat multiples times (you cook it on low). Cook it, cool it, cook it again, cool it again, etc. until it is the purity that you want for tallow. We plan to cook with it and use it for skin care products. What are your thoughts?
Megan says
Hi Rachel, tallow is more resistant to oxidation and rancidity than other animal fats because of its high smoke point. The key with the process is the low heat, about 180 degrees. Also, tallow can be made in simmering water in just 2 to 3 hours, then chilled and the water poured off. This would be my preferred method, as opposed to a longer simmer without the water. Can not the purity be achieved by pouring the rendered fat through cheesecloth, instead of the repeat meltings? If not, as long as the temp is super low, it may be fine.
Ann Cowell says
Good read. The receipe says 2 tablespoons of salt but is it like drinking sea water. Should the receipe really state 2 Teaspoons.
Megan says
Hi Ann, if you’re concerned, you can certainly add less, and then taste and see what you like personally. 2 Tablespoons is correct. Perhaps you should start with 1 Tablespoon or 2 teaspoons. You may prefer a much lower salt version.
Amy says
Hi Megan, thank you so much for the easy recipe!! I purchase pasture raised stewing hens which like to be cooked low and slow as the meat is tougher since the chicken is older. Following your recipe can I cook the whole raw chicken in water, collect the meat broth and then continue cooking the whole chicken with fresh water or should I strip the meat and adjust the water to match the weight of the remaining bones?
Thanks So much!!
Megan says
Hi Amy, you’re welcome, and thanks for the great question. You could keep cooking the whole chicken, but if you do that, the skin will continue to render fat into the water, so you’ll need to ladle it off about every 2 to 3 hours. Blessings!
Abbe says
Thank you for your reply! I didnt end up doing it, so no worries.
I do have another question though, and the broth is on now so I so pray u see this soon:)
I’m in the process of making chicken feet bone broth this time in the crock pot.
I only have a 2 quart crock pot (I plan I getting a bigger one, but $$ is extremely tight), so course, it doesnt make much.
I have managed to get about 2 pounds of chicken feet in it, plus garlic, plus half an onion, and a small bit of ginger and water in it, and after 2 hours, it finally got to a hard simmer.
I left this cooking since about 5pm yesterday, and now its 10:00 am in the morning right now.
Its reduced so much and I know its gonna end up being like two cups of broth and that’s it.
I wanted to ask:
would it be ok to strain out the bones and onion, etc. right now, put just the bones and water back in the crock, fill it with more hot water, and continue to simmer to get more broth or is that a stupid idea?
I just looked under the lid, and he chicken feet as of now still have skin, bones, are intact.
Thank you!
Megan says
Hi Abbe, what you said is fine to do. Hopefully you followed your intuition on that one. 🙂
Lizzie says
Hello. I know this post is pretty old now, but maybe somebody can answer. I’ve made meat stock with beef bones yesterday. I did a first batch in a slow cooker for around 4.5 hours (1 hour on high and the rest on low) and then harvested my meat stock. I always seem to get plenty of fat and gelatin in my second batch (of bone broth) when I’ve made it previously (glad I found your post about rancid fat ????) so after reading though the comments and seeing somebody had something similar happen, I put everything except the drained stock back in the pot and added more water and then cooked another batch of stock in the instant pot (30mins). This one again had some fat and when chilled it is very solid so must have had lots of gelatin still. I then took everything off the bones and put them back in the pot for a batch of bone brother (90 mins in instant pot). When I harvested this I have again found – good amount of fat.
I’m puzzled as to where this came from as the bones were bare. Also I wondered whether this batch was safe to eat, as it’s still got fat on it – do I discard the fat and drink the stock or is the stock ruined too?
Secondly is it definitely okay to eat the fat from my second batch? The fat in it will have been heated for over the 3 hours altogether even if it wasn’t “released” until after the first batch.
Hope this makes sense…?
Megan says
Hi Lizzie, this post is always updated, so it’s always relevant and not “old”. 🙂 I continue to answer questions on all my posts indefinitely. If you cook any batch longer than 3 hours, discard the fat. If the broth tastes fine, with that longer crock pot batch, you can keep it. In the future, I would not do these longer cook times if they’re yielding fat, and I would not eat the fat either.
Lizzie says
Hi Megan. Thanks so much for your reply 🙂 Could I just clarify…
Previous to reading your post I had been cooking meat stock as follows – 1 hour on high and then 6 hours on low on the slow cook setting in my IP, as per the Heal your gut cookbook (presumably approved by Dr Campbell McBride as she wrote the foreword). The book says it can be on low for 8 to 10 hours. Is this wrong? I had a batch on when I happened to read this post, which is why I stopped it early.
Also with my batch of bones that I mentioned in my post, the first batch (slow cooker for 4.5 hours) came out very watery and with little fat – what did I do wrong? It feels as though the batch wasn’t cooked long enough…? The second batch (a further 30 mins uni the IP on high pressure had a little fat and gelled and the final batch (a further 90 minutes in the IP) had the most fat and is extremely solid so there must have been plenty of gelatin still left in them. Am I not wasting this if I don’t use the bones?
Sorry to keep bothering you! I’d really like to be sure of what mistakes I’m making here. Lizzie
Megan says
Sure, Lizzy, happy to help. You may need to decide if it’s best to follow what you’ve read from Dr. Natasha’s cookbook or not. It seems to me that you can’t follow two different sets of instructions, or you’ll end up confused and with various questions. For me, I prefer the shorter cooked broths, which I actually learned from her, too, lol. The longer the bone cooks, the more the core of the bone is accessed, which is actually where lead is more likely to be found, as opposed to the outer bone. I get plenty of gelatin from my first cook, so for our family, I now stop there, as long as there is enough bone to water, ratio-wise. But I understand wanting to be frugal and get more broth from the bones. Why you got the most fat from the 3rd batch, I’m not sure, as I’ve never had that happen, but I certainly would not drink long cooked broth that’s full of fat (and possibly lead). The main take away here is for longer cooked broths, be sure to check your broth every 30 minutes (if pressure cooking), or every 3 hours if slow simmering, to skim off any fat. For shorter cooked broths when you want a gel, be sure to use enough bones to water, ratio wise.
Heidi Cooley says
Hello! Thank you for the recipe! I have a question; if I remove the first batch of broth after 3ish hours and keep the fat in it, can I use that broth later in recipes that require simmering or cooking for a few hours? I have several crockpot meals I’m thinking of but was worried that the fat becomes rancid in that case. Is the second cook of the bones an delicious broth to use in cooking as well?
I definitely plan to freeze some of this specifically for breaking my fasts but I also hope to use it in my cooking. I’m just confused about whether that will make the fat rancid. If I’m confusing, it’s early and I haven’t had my coffee yet ????
Megan says
Hi Heidi, a good question and one I’m surprised more people don’t ask. So no, you’re not confusing! 🙂 I’d skim off that fat and use it for short cooking needs, but not keep it in the broth for soups that will cook for hours. If you chill that first broth, the fat will rise to the top, so it’s super easy to take off and use for another need. The second cook broth is not as flavorful, no, but it’s still good for using in recipes.
Lauren says
Sorry I just saw you wrote in the post that you can mix the two. But now my more important question!!! Will the meat stock take over most of the flavor? I’m debating just stopping at meat stock because my family is NOT a fan of the taste of bone broth. Thank you in advance!
Megan says
No problem, glad you found that. I personally now stop at meat stock. 🙂 It serves all my needs, is delicious and is still full of gelatin.
Noah Ench says
Hi Megan. This is a great article. I found the answer to use the insta pot for the 1at round (meat stock.)for 30 min question #1 do I naturally release or manually release the pressure?. I am using these bones from rep provisions. I still notice a good amount of fat in my 2nd broth…and even since in my 3rd.. question#2 do I pressure cook the second for the whole 120min then skim or do a total of 120 but turn it off every 30 and skim? What is the best way to skim.? Do you keep all the fat from the 1st batch or always skim? If I’m getting so much fat out of the marrow neck knuckle bones on the ²nd³rd batches am a getting ruined broth?.
thank you so much and sending all my friends your info!
Megan says
Hi Noah, thank you, and so glad it’s helpful. It’s hard to do a QPR with this recipe because the liquid is so close to the lid and simmering, so it just wants to spill out the steam valve if it’s opened right away. I like to let mine sit for at least 45 minutes before releasing some steam and pressure, or better yet an hour. Personally, I would rather stop it at the next 30 minute mark to remove fat again than let it cook 2 hours with the new fat. To skim, you can use a ladle along the top, getting a bit of broth at the same time. I think the video shows that a bit. I do keep the fat and use it for other cooking that’s brief. It would be ideal to knock the marrow out of the bones (have them cut into small enough sections that this works) so they don’t cook with the marrow for so long. Best!
Noah says
Thank you Megan ❤️
Megan says
My pleasure. 🙂
Noah Ench says
So update. I did two meat stocks cuz my bones had a lot on them and they were big bones I cleaned them completely for the third batch bone broth I did 120 minutes it gelled then I did a fourth batch 90 minutes It gelled I did a fifth one 90 minutes jelled again. It’s really jiggly and jelly like after the fifth one I wonder should I just keep going until I don’t get one that gels ?
Megan says
I’d stop at that point, but glad you got so much from them! Thanks for sharing!
marina says
Hello and thank you for all the great help on this.
*My first question is, why is it necessary to put salt in the first and in the second batch of bone broth.
Is it just for flavoring?
I have the same question for the apple cider too. What characteristics gives to the broth?
*Also what is the preparation you do to your bones before start simmering, at the beginning? How you properly clean them?
*After finishing the broth can i freeze it in cubes, and then use it again in cooking (e.g. cooking rice)?
*Why don’t you make a video, so we can have a better view of your way to bone brothing?
Megan says
Hi Marina, the salt is for flavor. The vinegar helps pull more from the bones but is not necessary at all. No prep needed for the bones with the process I’ve outlined. Yes, feel free to freeze in cubes for future cooking. A video is indeed included on this page. Best!
Terence du Plessis says
Dear Megan
Thank you for a very informative and thought-provoking article. Thank you too for your kindness and patience in answering readers’ questions!
I just finished making a batch of beef and pork stock and had a question about the fat that congealed on the top of the very gelatinous stock. I decided to do some searching on the net when I came across your article and the many comments and questions it has received. Clearly, there are many who are interested in the subject.
I’ve also learned about the great quality of stock made from chicken feet! So much so that I am keen to try it as soon as an opportunity to do so presents itself. Thank you for that insight!
I have 2 suggestions and comments.
First, the matter of fat rancidity/oxidation when cooking stock over 3 hours or longer. I read your comment from a reader, Hannah, who asked whether there was evidence supporting this claim. You replied that while there is no direct evidence supporting this claim, we can extrapolate from the research links you kindly provided.
My suggestion is that, in the absence of direct evidence of fat rancidity/oxidation with long/extended cooking periods, surely can trust our senses of smell and taste to confirm rancidity or otherwise of rendered fat from stock? Rancidity should present quite clearly by tasting and smelling ‘off’, sour or putrid? Admittedly, however, I have limited experience with rancid fat or the causes of rancidity. But I think I can trust my nose and tongue.
Should that not be the test? I am loathe, as I’m sure many others are too, to assume a truth not apparent from the evidence before us and therefore waste a perfectly good resource.
My second suggestion relates to the use of apple cider vinegar. One of the research links you provided suggests that the use of apple cider vinegar (ACV) is negligible in releasing nutrients/minerals. I have also read that using ACV helps release nutrients, and have generally added it to my stock. This seems a myth. Also see article here. https://bluebirdprovisions.co/blogs/news/expert-wrong-making-bone-broth.
My suggestion is that we dispel this myth, rather than cling to it. A bit like the myth that using salt when cooking dried beans is bad. The opposite is true, as I’ve discovered for myself. In fact, the broth/stock from cooking well-seasoned dried beans is absolutely wonderful! We would be depriving ourselves of great flavour by leaving it out.
Of course, should people wish to have the added acidity or acetic acid flavour in their stock, that is a matter of personal preference. But let’s be clear; the evidence shows it does not increase the nutrient/mineral content of a stock, nor does it improve the harvesting of collagen and gelatine. I will be leaving it out out of my stocks in future.
There is so much we still do not know about nutrition and making and getting the best out of the foods we consume. Time and research will change that. Meanwhile, let’s work together to make the most of what we know and leave behind what doesn’t serve us.
Terence
Megan says
Hi Terence, Thank you so much for your very thoughtful comments! I love your suggestions and totally agree! (By the way, I apologize for the delay in responding! Our home, from where I work, is a little extra busy these days, and longer comments take me longer to answer, so I sometimes need to wait on them. So happy to be here now.) Yes, rancid tastes and smells rancid, and those tests are valid! I agree about the ACV, and will see where I can make some changes in my answers to reflect that! 🙂 Many cheers and best to you!!
Pam says
Thank you for this wonderful information! Quick question – do we simmer without a lid, with a lid, or a lid slightly askew so some air and condensation can be released?
Megan says
Hi Pam, you’re welcome. With the lid on. 🙂
Pam says
Just made my second complete batch and I’m enjoying drinking healthy broth every morning! I have a few questions if you will…
-When I’m done with harvesting, should I throw the bones away, or how can they be reused?
-After making stock, I refrigerate it, then start making broth. How do I combine refrigerated stock with the newly done and hot bone broth? Is it ok to pour hot broth into refrigerated stock? Or should I let them both get room-temp before combining? Open to any ideas 🙂
-I make my stock&broth on the stove. I get my husband to hold the pot to drain the broth into another pot while I make sure the bones don’t fall out. It’s kind of a pain. Is there an easier way to keep the bones in the pot when draining?
Thank you so much for helping so many of us!
Megan says
Hi Pam, happy to help and so glad you’re enjoying the broth! You can use the bones twice; then compost them. Yes, you can add hot broth into refrigerated stock, no problem combining. Your current method of pouring is okay, but if you have a colander that you can nest into a pot in the sink, then you won’t need the second person. Just pour from the hot pot into the pot in the sink, and the colander will prevent the bones from falling in. Blessings! 🙂