I've had a lot of time on my hands this past week. Have you watched the new Netflix series Tyding Up by Marie Kondo? It seems just about everyone has. I've seen so many posts on social media about everyone getting motivated to "tidy up". I've gone through all my drawers already and have filled up a bag stuffed full, ready to donate. It feels good to get things decluttered!
I don't always have this much of time on my hand though; getting laid off kind of changes things. I was trying to think of what I wanted my next post to be about and time savers in the kitchen just kept coming to mind. Last Christmas I got an Instant Pot and now it's all about how to cook things in less time at my house.
Kyle and I are doing our annual Whole30 challenge to try and get back to the basics, and cook healthier meals more often. There is just something about the holidays that gets us off track. I think I made 4 batches of homemade egg nog, had a cocktail or margarita just about every night, and had so much take-out that my body was craving some healthy food. Cooking every meal almost 7 days a week can get to be a lot of work. That tends to be the hardest part for Kyle and I.
This year, I tackled it a little differently and prepped the meal plan/grocery list for the entire month ahead of time. It has saved me so much time meal planning. (If anyone is interested in this meal plan, I'm happy to share it with you).
Looking ahead on the menu I had last week were a few recipes that called for broth. So instead of buying organic (no sugar added) broth, I made my own to last the week. It's soooo easy and literally costs nothing (if you are prepared).
Let me ask you this: do you ever buy a rotisserie chicken? What about when you are chopping up veggies like onions, carrots, bell peppers, jalapeños etc? Do you just discard the scraps in the trash or compost? Well, what about saving them and turning them in to a rich healthy broth that will turn your other recipes into something magical? (Did I just sound like a sales rep right there? Where did that come from?)
Here's how it works:
After using up the meat on a rotisserie chicken, save the bones from the chicken. It usually comes in one of those resealable bags right? Just seal the bag and throw it in the freezer and forget about it.
Next time you are chopping up some veggies for a recipe and have some scraps, pull out your chicken bone bag and throw in your scraps.
Keep adding until your bag is full.
Additionally, if you have any other bones (ribs, pork chop, pork bones) throw those in there. The more bones you add, the more collagen rich you are going to make your broth. Collagen is good for our hair, skin and bone growth!
After your bag is full, throw all of that into your slow cooker or instant pot. Frozen and all.
Cover it with water (about 6-8 cups).
Add 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (this will help pull the minerals out of the bones) and a couple cloves of garlic for added flavor. Let it cook low and slow for 12 hours. You can put it on at night and when you wake up in the morning it should be done.
Give it a taste. Does it need a little extra salt or garlic?
After straining it into jars you should have 6-8 cups of broth to use for the week or even freeze until you are ready to use it.
Like I mentioned before, if you have enough bones in your mix, you're going to have added collagen in your both. I like to pat myself on the back if it has this jelly like texture to it after it's cooled. I don't know if you can tell from the picture but it's not straight liquid, it's more like jello. That's how you know you captured the collagen. Nice! I get excited about these things and Kyle just gives me a weird look...
Happy broth making!
I don't always have this much of time on my hand though; getting laid off kind of changes things. I was trying to think of what I wanted my next post to be about and time savers in the kitchen just kept coming to mind. Last Christmas I got an Instant Pot and now it's all about how to cook things in less time at my house.
Kyle and I are doing our annual Whole30 challenge to try and get back to the basics, and cook healthier meals more often. There is just something about the holidays that gets us off track. I think I made 4 batches of homemade egg nog, had a cocktail or margarita just about every night, and had so much take-out that my body was craving some healthy food. Cooking every meal almost 7 days a week can get to be a lot of work. That tends to be the hardest part for Kyle and I.
This year, I tackled it a little differently and prepped the meal plan/grocery list for the entire month ahead of time. It has saved me so much time meal planning. (If anyone is interested in this meal plan, I'm happy to share it with you).
Looking ahead on the menu I had last week were a few recipes that called for broth. So instead of buying organic (no sugar added) broth, I made my own to last the week. It's soooo easy and literally costs nothing (if you are prepared).
Let me ask you this: do you ever buy a rotisserie chicken? What about when you are chopping up veggies like onions, carrots, bell peppers, jalapeños etc? Do you just discard the scraps in the trash or compost? Well, what about saving them and turning them in to a rich healthy broth that will turn your other recipes into something magical? (Did I just sound like a sales rep right there? Where did that come from?)
Here's how it works:
After using up the meat on a rotisserie chicken, save the bones from the chicken. It usually comes in one of those resealable bags right? Just seal the bag and throw it in the freezer and forget about it.
Next time you are chopping up some veggies for a recipe and have some scraps, pull out your chicken bone bag and throw in your scraps.
Keep adding until your bag is full.
Additionally, if you have any other bones (ribs, pork chop, pork bones) throw those in there. The more bones you add, the more collagen rich you are going to make your broth. Collagen is good for our hair, skin and bone growth!
After your bag is full, throw all of that into your slow cooker or instant pot. Frozen and all.
Cover it with water (about 6-8 cups).
Add 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (this will help pull the minerals out of the bones) and a couple cloves of garlic for added flavor. Let it cook low and slow for 12 hours. You can put it on at night and when you wake up in the morning it should be done.
Give it a taste. Does it need a little extra salt or garlic?
After straining it into jars you should have 6-8 cups of broth to use for the week or even freeze until you are ready to use it.
Like I mentioned before, if you have enough bones in your mix, you're going to have added collagen in your both. I like to pat myself on the back if it has this jelly like texture to it after it's cooled. I don't know if you can tell from the picture but it's not straight liquid, it's more like jello. That's how you know you captured the collagen. Nice! I get excited about these things and Kyle just gives me a weird look...
Here are a couple of the recipes I used the broth in this week. You will find that the broth is already so rich and full of flavor that it's just going to make your meals even better.
Happy broth making!
Bone Broth
Ingredients:
1 rotisserie chicken (most of the chicken removed)
Vegetable scraps ( onion, carrots, celery, bell pepper, jalapeño)
6-8 cups of water (just until everything is covered)
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 to 2 garlic cloves
Salt and Pepper
Process:
Throw all ingredients into slow cooker. Cook on low for 12 hours or longer. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed. Strain broth with a fine mesh strainer into jars. Refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze until ready to use.
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