Healthy Gut, Healthy Body: Making Tasty Bone Broth

Bone broth in Chinese medicine is a very important component of the diet. More than just a stock, bone broth is slowly simmered for 24-72 hours. Made with (organic) beef, pork, or chicken bones (pescatarians can also use fish bones), the process of slow cooking the broth leeches all of the important minerals and fats from the bones, marrow, and gelatin. Consuming bone broth helps reduce inflammation and helps heal the gut microvilli for improved digestion; the gut in Chinese medicine is the source of all blood formation, which makes it imperative in reproductive medicine. Healthy gut equals healthy body!

Here's the recipe:

From the "Heal Your Gut Cookbook," Boynton & Brackett

Ingredients:

• 3-4 pounds beef marrow and knuckle bones (organic + grass fed)
• 2 pounds meaty bones such as short ribs
• ½ cup raw apple cider vinegar
• 4 quarts filtered water
• 3 celery stalks, halved
• 3 carrots, halved
• 3 onions, quartered
• Handful of fresh parsley
• Sea salt

Method:
 

1. Place bones in a pot or a crockpot, add apple cider vinegar and water, and let the mixture sit for 1 hour so the vinegar can leach the mineral out of the bones.

2. Add more water if needed to cover the bones.

3. Add the vegetables bring to a boil and skim the scum from the top and discard.

4. Reduce to a low simmer, cover, and cook for 24-72 hours (if you’re not comfortable leaving the pot to simmer overnight, turn off the heat and let it sit overnight, then turn it back on and let simmer all day the next day)

5. During the last 10 minutes of cooking, throw in a handful of fresh parsley for added flavor and minerals.

6. Let the broth cool and strain it, making sure all marrow is knocked out of the marrow bones and into the broth.

7.  Add sea salt to taste and drink the broth as is or store in fridge up to 5 to 7 days or freezer up to 6 months for use in soups or stews.

Enjoy!