Last weekend I made a delicious pot of bone broth. The smell of homemade goodness filled the whole house for 2 days! It was so comforting.

Every fall I stock my freezer with bone broth. Throughout the year, anytime we have a whole chicken (which is usually once a week) I freeze the carcass. I usually have a good stockpile of bones at any given time.

Bone broth is nourishing for the gut and just like chicken soup, helps ward off those winter bugs that are going around this time of year. We mainly use it in our house to improve our gut health and when someone is sick. It has been an integral part of the plan to repair my children’s guts and help their food sensitivities.

It’s trendy and popular right now. But what is it and how does it differ from regular both?

All broths are made from boiling food in water. But unlike a typical chicken or vegetable broth, bone broth is made from boiling mainly bones with little meat.

The goal with bone broth is to simmer the bones for a long time, usually 14-48 hours to get as many amino acids, minerals and collagen out of the bones.  The nutrients in bone broth are very nurturing for the gut and improving gut health can help all kinds of other conditions. Collagen is particularly nourishing for the gut lining and may help reduce intestinal inflammation. It also has great benefits for the skin. If you have a child who is constantly sick or suffering from eczema, allergies or asthma adding this to your list of remedies might do them some good.

It is such an easy thing to do. It takes about 10 minutes to prepare, I leave it to let it cook for 48 hours, and then I spend about another 20 min straining and jarring it. Once it’s cooked, I keep enough out for a few days, and freeze the rest.

Start by adding your bones to the pot (I do mine in a crockpot). You can use chicken bones or beef bones. I always choose organic or locally raised meat that is antibiotic and hormone free and free-range. Then I add carrot, onions and celery for flavour and more nutrients. I also add apple cider vinegar which helps draw out the nutrients from the bones. Then cover the ingredients with good quality water. Ta-da! It’s that simple.

There are no current studies to support the benefits but do we need them? Soup doesn’t have studies and we know it’s good for us. The problem with studying gut health foods is the complexity of the gut. There is no magic bullet for fixing the gut. It requires a number of strategies. Consuming bone broth, which contains valuable nutrients that the gut needs, is one of those strategies and can definitely help.

It’s also soothing and nourishing. It feels good when you drink it. And, you can use bone broth to make amazing soups and stews! Too busy to make a recipe? Just drink it as a beverage. Heat the broth and add some sea salt, pepper and your favourite herbs or garlic. Then sit down and relax. Sip the broth and savour the flavour, just as you might a tea or coffee. It’s great for when the kids are sick and can’t eat much of anything.

And, as you enjoy the broth, you have the pleasure of knowing that you and your kids are getting all kinds of minerals and amino acids that your bodies will love, too.

My Best Broth Tip: Be sure to simmer the broth long enough that the water level drops by half. That’s when you have finally cooked out the taste of water.

Tell me in the comments, have you tried bone broth? What are your favourite ways to make it?