I am really excited to show you how to make beef bone broth. I’ve been making chicken stock for years and began experimenting with chicken bone broth over the last year. Once I realized how amazing it tasted and all of its health benefits, I can’t figure out why it took me so long to try it!
Over the last few months, I’ve ventured into making beef bone broth. It’s very similar to making chicken bone broth, but there are a few little differences. Come on into my kitchen and let’s make some amazing nutritious bone broth together.
But first let’s talk about how to select bones so you can create a healthy bone broth. You always need to begin with the healthiest ingredients you can find. Bones from organic, pastured, and grass-fed animals are always the best choice. These bones are more nutrient-dense and come from animals raised in a healthier environment with fewer toxins. Find out more about how to choose healthy bones here.
Now let’s get started! I began with about 5 pounds of beef bones. There’s nothing magical about the amount of bones. We just happen to sell 5 pound bags of bones in our farm store so that’s what I went with. Not really very scientific, but that’s how most of my cooking goes!
I’ve also included a video below on how to make beef bone broth. If you would like to skip to the video, click here. There is also a link at the end of this blog.
I placed the bones in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Next I roasted them in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes then turned them over and roasted them another 30 minutes.
They were a nice golden brown and smelled pretty yummy!
While the bones were roasting, I roughly cut up a large onion and two carrots. Many recipes call for celery, but the hubby has a strong aversion to celery so I leave it out of recipes. Don’t worry about how you chop the veggies because you will discard them after long hours of cooking.
If you noticed, I didn’t peel the carrots and I’ve seen recipes where the onion skin is left on too. I’m not that adventurous yet, but you can create your own style here!
I placed the roasted bones, chopped vegetables, bay leaves, apple cider vinegar, salt and peppercorns in my large 10-quart stock pot.
You can also use a 6-quart crockpot. Ahhh, maybe that’s why you might need to use fewer bones…so all of it will fit in your crockpot.
Anyhow, you are probably wondering what the apple cider vinegar is all about. Well, the ACV is an acid which helps break down the bones so more nutrients can be drawn out of the bones during the cooking process.
Finally, I completely covered everything with water. Be sure the water is pure or filtered. You do not want municipal water laced with chemicals simmering with your lovely bones and veggies for the next day or two.
Cover and cook on low for 24 - 48 hours. Add water if needed to keep all the ingredients covered in water. Your cooking time will depend on the thickness of the bones. It takes longer for a thicker bone to break down and all the nutrients to cook out.
Again, this is not an exact science. Use your best judgement! A good indicator is that the broth will be dark brown in color.
The final step is to discard all solids and strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer and into a large bowl or kettle. I call it good enough at this point, but if you really want super clear bone broth strain once more through cheesecloth. If you look closely at my jar of bone broth, you can see a few particles that settle to the bottom which to me is no big deal.
Ladle the bone broth into Mason jars and let it chill to room temperature. Bone broth can be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks or frozen for future use.
Before using, you will likely want to skim off the accumulated fat on the surface. The fat on the top of my broth became very hard like tallow. This fat can be used as a healthy substitute for butter in other cooking.
Beef Bone Broth
Ingredients:
3–4 pounds of mixed grass-fed beef bones (marrow bones, oxtail, knuckles, short rib, etc.)
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon peppercorns
1 tsp. salt
8–10 cups pure water (or enough to cover ingredients)
Directions:
Roast bones at 400 for 1 hour turning after 30 minutes..
Place roasted bones, vinegar, peppercorns, and salt in large kettle or crock pot.
Add enough pure water to completely cover ingredients.
Cover and simmer on low for 24-48 hours.
Chopped vegetables and bay leaves can be added at any time during the cooking process. I prefer to add mine during the last 4-6 hours.
Pour broth through a fine mesh strainer to remove any bone or tissue.
Broth should be stored in refrigerator or frozen for later use.