Farmer Recipe: Spoon Full Farm’s “Bare-Bones” Broth
The 2020 crew at Spoon Full Farm.
In our modern era of food overproduction, beef bones are often discarded. To us, this is tragic. We are what we eat — therefore we should honor the lives and deaths of every animal that we eat by making good use of every part.
The uses for beef bone broth are only limited by your culinary imagination. Beef bone broth can be the basis for soups and stews, as a cooking liquid for grains or legumes, or as a braising liquid for roasts.
Season with salt, and it also makes a satisfying and nourishing drink on its own.
Beef Bones are available at our booth at the Capitol Hill Farmers Market, as well as for delivery through our Winter CSA.
Here is how to make your own simple, robust, delicious, and restorative bone broth in your own kitchen:
The Goods:
~5 pounds beef bones. Choose grass-fed for your body, and rotational-grazed for our earth
1 head of garlic, excess skins removed, top chopped off to expose the cloves
2 Tablespoons black peppercorns
OPTIONAL — Mulling spices and/or dried mushrooms and herbs
The Process:
Heat oven to 450º.
Place bones onto a large baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, turning to coat every side.
Put bones into hot oven and roast until deeply brown and caramelized, about 35 minutes.
Put the roasted bones in a large (at least 6 quart) stockpot. Don’t waste the delicious crispy brown bits on the bottom of the pan; loosen the bits with a splash of water and a spatula, and add those to your stockpot with your bones.
Add enough water to completely cover the bones (about 12 cups).
Add the black peppercorns and head of garlic.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a very low simmer, uncovered, occasionally skimming foam and excess fat from the top using a ladle, for at least 8, and up to 24 hours on the stovetop. (Do not leave the stovetop on unattended, simply cool and continue simmering the next day).
If necessary, add more water to ensure bones are fully submerged. Alternatively, you can cook the broth in a slow cooker on low for the same amount of time.
Remove bones with either a slotted spoon or tongs. Pour broth through a fine- mesh strainer into a large heatproof bowl to cool. Once broth has cooled, transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Add salt, herbs, vinegar, and/or spices to taste.
(We love to make bone broth with mushrooms and mulling spices, and then mix it up with a healthy forkful of our Shimmy Shimmy Sauerkraut… makes our bellies smile.)