Rotisserie Chicken Bone Broth
Next time you get a rotisserie chicken, don't toss out the carcass! Save it to make a collagen-rich homemade bone broth that GELS (just like jello!) when cooled. It's a high-protein, super nutritious broth that can be sipped on in cold weather or used in any recipe that calls for chicken broth/stock. And the best part? It's completely FREE to make since you're using scraps you would otherwise toss!
Servings: 10 cups
Calories: 50kcal
Cost: $0
Equipment
- 1 Reusable coffee filter not completely necessary, but it helps a lot for straining the broth!
Ingredients
- 3 Rotisserie chicken carcasses including bones, skin, and any other scraps
- 2-3 cups onion, celery, and carrot scraps see notes
- 12-16 cups water
Instructions
- Add 3 Rotisserie chicken carcasses to a large pot and cover with about 12-16 cups water, depending on how big your pot is. They can be frozen - no need to thaw out beforehand. Bring to a boil, then set a lid on top ajar and simmer on low for 4 hours or longer (see notes). I use the back burner for an extra low simmer.
- In the last hour of cooking, add the 2-3 cups onion, celery, and carrot scraps (again, they can be frozen going in). Continue to simmer the broth on low with the lid ajar.
- To strain the broth, use a slotted spoon to get the large solids out and discard (I like to add them to a plastic grocery bag in my sink). Then, place a reusable coffee filter (or mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth) on top of the container you wish to store the bone broth in (a wide-mouth mason jar is good for this, but I use those take-out soup containers). Use a ladle to scoop the broth into the filter and let it strain into the container. If it's hard to drain the filter, use a spoon to stir it around in the filter to press the liquid out.
- Remove the fat from the top. It's easy to remove the fat once the broth has cooled in the fridge - you can just peel it right off the top. If you are using the bone broth right away, you can skim the fat off with a spoon. (Save it for another purpose if you want - see notes!)
- Use the bone broth in any recipe that calls for chicken broth or stock, or sip it as a cozy savory beverage in the cold weather!
Notes
- Straining the broth through a very fine sieve like a coffee filter or a mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth removes the really small particles that are inevitably found in a broth that is cooked for such a long time. If you are picky, you may need to strain a couple of times. If you aren't picky, a regular mesh sieve will do - you'll be left with some detritus in the broth but it's edible, even if the broth looks a bit cloudy!
- Vegetable scraps are easy to save in your freezer. When you use onions, carrots, or celery for recipes, just save the ends and peels in a gallon sized zip-top bag in your freezer (make sure they're clean first!). Then, when you make this broth, you can grab a couple of handfuls to add to the pot.
- If you don't have vegetable scraps, just add a quartered yellow onion, a couple of stalks of celery cut into pieces, and a couple of carrots cut into pieces. Or skip it all together!
- Other veggies you can use: I often add parsley stems to my freezer bag of scraps. You can add other root vegetables like parsnips or turnips. Mushrooms add a nice umami flavor to broth.
- Veggies NOT to use for broth: Cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, kale, or broccoli will be too overpowering in flavor. Don't use beets or radishes - they're too strong in flavor AND they'll color the broth. Potatoes will make the broth cloudy. Don't use strong herbs like basil either.
- Freezing the bone broth is a great way to store it. After it's cooled and I've removed the fat, I store in my freezer for many months. To defrost, I run hot water over the outside of the container until it's loosened, then plop the frozen block into a pot to defrost. This won't work if you use a jar or container that doesn't have straight sides, like a traditional mason jar, as the frozen block won't be able to pop out.
- You can use any roasted chicken carcasses for this recipe. If store-bought rotisserie chickens aren't your thing, save the carcasses from your home roasted chickens and follow the same guidelines. The flavor of the broth will depend on how the chicken was seasoned when you cooked it. If you have other scraps, like those left from bone-in thighs or wings, feel free to throw those in too.
- The total amount of bone broth you get depends on how much water was used originally, how much evaporated during cooking, and how much you strain out of the solids. I usually end up with 10-12 cups of broth using my 8-quart pot.
- Don't use too big of a pot unless you add more chicken carcasses! The ratio of water to chicken parts is important here for getting the broth to gel and have lots of collagen. While a watered down broth will still be tasty and useful, it won't be the gelled up bone broth we're aiming for here.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 50kcal | Protein: 8g | Sodium: 100mg | Potassium: 300mg | Calcium: 10mg