Slow Cooked Chicken Bone Broth

I didn’t know until recently that making chicken bone broth was actually really easy although time consuming. Yes, the steps are relatively easy even for beginners like me, but it takes so much time (although, thankfully most of the time I just have to wait for my slow cooker to finish its job) and so many things to wash afterwards.

The result was satisfying though and I really loved it that I started to make it almost weekly. The most important thing is (well, besides the fact that it is nutritious and packed with health benefits), it is much cheaper than buying it outside. I bought 1 small kampong chicken for $11.5 and I had 1 big pot of chicken bone broth at the end.

I will recommend that you use a slow cooker to make this, as this needs to be cooked slowly and in a very long time. You will loose so much water if you use stove top and it is very difficult to maintain the heat and water in such a long time. The chicken needs time to break down the connective tissue and bone marrow and extract the collagen.

Homemade bone broth will be thicker than regular broth, the consistency after all process is done will be like the one in the ramen soup. It has a deep (darker) color and a rich flavor. When chilled, the gelatin in the bone broth will solidify, which is a good sign that it is rich in nutrients. To consume, you just need to reheat it and turn it into liquid again.

This broth is made using whole chicken, simple spices like garlic and ginger, and some vegetables. At the end, we will blend the meat and the chicken. You can use mostly for soup (especially for ramen). For my family, I just give them each a small bowl to drink everyday to increase their immune system. Basically, it has lots of benefits and goods in it, full of vitamins, minerals, and proteins. It is delicious as it is and I don’t add too much salt and no sugar.

Ingredients:

1 small (preferably kampong) chicken for about 1 kg, cut into 6
2 L of hot water
a handful of celery (stalks and leaves)
5 bay leaves
10 slices of ginger
1 large yellow onion, cut into 4
5 garlic, crushed
2 carrots, sliced
1 tbsp of salt (adjustable)
1/4 tsp ground white pepper

Method:

Optional step: blanch the chicken by cooking it in boiling water for 5 minutes, then discard the water. Wash the chicken and remove all the impurities under running water. Transfer to a slow cooker pot
If you do not want to blanch the chicken, wash it under running water and squeeze 1/4 lemon into the chicken. Let it sit for 30 minutes, then transfer the chicken into the slow cooker pot
Into the pot, add all other ingredients, then close and seal the lid
Cook for 6 hours by setting it at low temperature, then cook again for another 6 hours at high temperature (my slow cooker only has 2 settings, so you can adjust based on your slow cooker). When it’s done, the broth should be in brownish color, the meat is very tender, and the chicken feet are soft and very easy to break. Let sit overnight or until it has cool completely.
Discard celery, bay leaves, and ginger. Separate the chicken from the bones (except for the chicken feet). Discard the chicken bones and set aside the chicken meat
Using a blender, blend together chicken meat, chicken feet, and 2 cups of broth until you reach smooth consistency (depending on the blender, you might need more than 2 cups to make the motor running)
Set a fine mesh strainer over a large clean pot. Pour the mixture from the blender through the strainer (push the mixture into the strainer using a spoon to squeeze the broth into the pot)
Whatever mixture left in the strainer, return back into the blender. Add 1 cup of liquid broth from the slow cooker pot, and blend until smooth
Strain the mixture into the pot
Repeat steps 8 and 9 for 4 to 5 times (you can also use at most 2 cups of water to blend the mixture if you are running out of broth but still have lost of leftover)
Reheat the pot, bring to a boil once, then turn off the heat and let it cool completely
Use the bone broth immediately or let it cool for storing. To store, pour it into glass jars (or other air-tight storage containers) and refrigerate for up to 5 days or up to 6 months in the freezer