Homemade Chicken Broth

How to Make and Preserve Your Own Broth!

Delicious and full of healthy nutrients

If you’ve never made your own chicken broth, after reading these simple instructions, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been doing it all along! Since we began raising meat chickens, I knew I wanted to use every piece of the bird and making broth with the bones and feet is a sure fire way of doing that. I’ll break it down in record speed! This recipe made 8 amazing pints of broth!

• Ingredients

  — Chicken carcass (1 whole chicken) and Clean Chicken Feet (optional)

  — 3-5 Garlic Cloves (depends on preference)

  — 2 Celery Stalks

  — 1 Onion (Skins and all)

  — 1 Large Carrot

  — 1-2 tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar

  — Water to cover all ingredients

  — Light Salt & Black Peppercorns to taste (feel free to add other herbs if you’re feeling fancy!)

• Equipment

  — Slow Cooker or InstaPot

  — Pressure Canner

  — Mason Jars, Lids, and Canning Equipment

COOKING DIRECTIONS

Rough chop all veggies & aromatics (you want the skins too!) & throw in your InstaPot OR Slow Cooker

• Place your chicken parts in the pot

• Cover with water (should come over the top of you chicken and vegetables fully)

• Add apple cider vinegar

• Add Salt (don’t over salt! You’ll want it mild enough so you can add flavor later with whatever recipe you’re using)

• Add a few whole peppercorns

• If using a slow cooker, cook on low for 8-12 hours (the longer, the better!). If using an InstaPot, cook using regular pressure setting for 2-3 hours and let the pressure release naturally.

• The longer your broth cooks, the more flavorful it becomes. I, personally, use the InstaPot because it cuts my time down drastically since I can immediately.

• Once the broth is done, skim any fat (there won’t be much at all!). 

• Strain out all veggies and bones using a sieve.

From here, you’ve got broth ready to use! See below for Canning Instructions

CANNING DIRECTIONS

• Get your jars and lids prepped (washed and warmed up)

• Fill your pressure cooker with a few inches of water and let the water come to a boil

• Use a ladle to spoon your broth into the jars (use your canning kit tools so as not to spill any of that precious broth!)

• Clean the rims of your jars once filled with distilled vinegar and a clean towel (this removes any liquid that could interfere with the jars sealing)

• Place lids on so everything is finger tight (do NOT over tighten)

• Carefully place your jar in the canner using your canning tongs

• Place the pressure canning lid on and let come up to pressure.

• Process at 11 pounds of pressure for 20 minutes (for pint jars). If using quart jars, process for 25 minutes.

• Let the canner release pressure naturally once you turn the heat off. 

• Leave the jars in the canner for several hours (or overnight) so everything can settle and jars seal. You’ll begin to hear popping noises as this happens. 

Your broth can now be stored in your pantry for several months.

Don’t forget to label your jar lids with the date and check sporadically to make sure they haven’t popped on their own. If you ever notice a lid has popped, discard immediately to be safe!

That’s all there is to it. Happy canning!