Homemade Turkey Stock

25 comments



With the holidays and flu season upon us, it's a great time to think about making homemade broth. The turkey carcass makes a great base for a healthy, rejuvenating stock. What are the health benefits of chicken/turkey/meat broth? According to the article The Benefits of Bone Broth found at Nourished Kitchen:

As the bones cook in water – especially if that water has been made slightly acidic by the inclusion of cider vinegar – minerals and other nutrients leach from the bones into the water. Homemade broth is rich in calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and other trace minerals. The minerals in broth are easily absorbed by the body. Bone broth even contains glucosamine and chondroitin – which are thought to help mitigate the deleterious effects of arthritis and joint pain.

The key to nutritious meat stock is in the gelatin. In her book Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon writes:

Gelatin acts first and foremost as an aid to digestion and has been used successfully in the treatment of many intestinal disorders, including hyperacidity, colitis and Crohn's disease. Although gelatin is by no means a complete protein, containing only the amino acids arginine and glycine in large amounts, it acts as a protein sparer, allowing the body to more fully utilize the complete proteins that are taken in. Thus, gelatin-rich broths are a must for those who cannot afford large amounts of meat in their diets. Gelatin also seems to be of use in the treatment of many chronic disorders, including anemia and other diseases of the blood, diabetes, muscular dystrophy and even cancer.

Getting the broth to gel can be easier said than done. In my experience, beef stock made from knuckle and marrow bones gels easily.Turkey carcasses gel easily.  Chicken stock can be tricky. Stock made with chicken feet consistently offers a gelatin-rich broth. It is relatively simple provided you can buy the feet; I get mine from a local poultry farmer or online. Online options include:


The following 10-minute video demonstrates the stock-making process (including the use of chicken feet).




Recipe for Chicken/Turkey Stock (excerpts from Nourishing Traditions)

1 whole free-range chicken or 2-3 pounds bony chicken parts
(Turkey carcass/bones can be easily substituted.)

Gizzards and/or feet (optional)

4 quarts cold filtered water
2 tbls vinegar
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots peeled and coarsely chopped
2 celery sticks, coarsely chopped
1 bunch parsley

Place chicken or chicken pieces in a large stainless steel pot with water, vinegar and all vegetables except parsley. Let stand 30-60 minutes. Bring to a boil and remove scum that rises to the top. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 6-24 hours. About 10 minutes before finishing the stock, add parsley. Strain and refrigerate broth.


Bone stock provides the foundation for the GAPS (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) diet, which we have integrated for the last three years.

With its easy absorbability, great taste, and rich concentration of nutrients, meat stock makes a great medicine.

25 comments :

  1. Are you freezing your broth or canning it? I can all of my chicken broth... pints and half pints. It is great for soups, rices, and even in mashed potatoes. I usually just do chicken and turkey. Have fun!!!!

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  2. Thanks for passing this info along Andrea.
    Maybe the more I hear about it, the more
    likely for me to actually do it. ugh:) kt

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  3. :) I often cook my broth longer than 24 hours... I have no problems getting lots of gelatin from my chicken broth...
    We make large batches and freeze what we are not using immediately...
    GREAT post!

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  4. This is it -the proverbial chicken soup! Many thanks, Andrea!

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  5. I am going to make some turkey broth so that we can have turkey soup with the leftover turkey! just to clarify do you use cider vinegar or regular? And if I make a lot can I freeze it?

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  6. I stick with raw ACV simply because it's a live food, full of enzymes. Here is an interesting article on the difference between distilled and raw:

    http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/the-benefits-of-apple-cider-vinegar/

    You can defintely freeze it. It's a good idea to boil it down quite a bit at the end of the simmering time to make it more concentrated and easier to store.

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  7. You are definitely REAL women!!! Those chicken feet...ugh! Well, as you all said, "If we can do it, you can do it." I am going to give it a try. Thank you so much for posting the video.
    Oh, your hair looks beautiful ala natura'l!

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  8. Interesting post! You might finally inspire me to buy that book. Do you think you could use a cow bone instead? I found a really good local source of grass fed beef and know that he sells the bones too.

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  9. Health problems from mold could be dangerous.There are respiratory problems which if not taken care of could even be fatal.

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  10. Great post, Andrea.

    Organic apple cider vinegar has so many benefits. It's the only one I would ever ingest. Thanks for that link.

    I would certainly never use white vinegar on my skin or internally. Some of it is actually being made from petroleum bi-products today. Most don't list ingredients. Heinz is the only one I've found that has ingredients and is not. I use it in my laundry as a 'fabric softener' and for general cleaning.

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  11. Julie,
    All bones are great! Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride says this about bones:

    "It is essential to use bones and joints, as they provide the healing substances, not so much the muscle meats. Ask the butcher to cut in half the large tubular bones, so you can get the bone marrow out of them after cooking."

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  12. Wonderful job with that video! Who knew that making broth with chicken feet would be so easy! I do have a question though....do you use a gas stove?
    I've always heard that gas is a no-no for most folks with MCS. Would like to know your experience of it.
    Thanks! You all looked wonderful on the video...and the girls ending it with that high five was so cute!!
    Hugs,
    Ruth

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  13. Actually our current rental home is all electric for that reason, Ruth.
    Glad you liked the video :)

    Andrea

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  14. Great video, Andrea! So, how do you use the stock when it's done? Do you eat it as is, or do you portion it out for other recipes? How long does it last for your family?

    Thanks for sharing this info!

    Beth

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  15. Beth,
    We have so many people eating soup each day that one chicken lasts a day. If we manage to get ahead, I freeze some. I like to use broth in mashed cauliflower. Red meat broth is great in chili.
    I'd like to try freezing the broth in ice cube trays. This would make small boullion cubes that would be great additions to recipes.

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  16. A little trick I wanted to share to get more marrow out of the whole chicken is to let it boil until it falls apart, then take a pair of scissors and cut the bones in the water. When the chicken has boiled a while, the bones seem to soften making them easier to cut :)

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  17. Hi Andrea! I'm wondering why I can't access the video from this post? Been doing the GAPS for two weeks and so far so good:)

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  18. Kiki,
    Try this link:

    http://momsaware.org/recipes/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3:homemade-chicken-stock&catid=8:stock&Itemid=10



    Or you can go to momsaware.org and click on rejuvenating recipes, find the stock tab and click on that.
    Congrats on two weeks!!!!

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  19. Hi Andrea,

    I have grass-fed beef bones that I want to use. You mentioned using the marrow after you boil them. What do you do with the marrow?

    Also, where do you get the chicken feet?

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  20. U.S. Wellness meats offers chicken feet. I get mine from my local farmer.
    The marrow falls out of the bone and goes right into the broth as I understand it.

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  21. Andrea, I have come back to your classic broth post for direction. I am ready to try GAPS (finally - yea!) after a week of symptoms affecting my ability to concentrate at my new job. Thank you. You your family AND your chicken feet are a blessing!

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  22. Maribeth,
    Keep me posted! Let me know if you have any other questions that arise! So nice to hear from you as always.:)

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  23. Thank you, Andrea!!!

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  24. Andrea, I am able to make broth...I think i need to be on a soup-only diet for now. (It's hard to make enough soup! I guess I need to freeze to-go mason jars of soup!)

    How would you use the broth when soup is all I should be eating? Can I get all i need by mashing with cauliflower? If not I guess I should warm it on the stove and then season with salt and organic pepper and just drink it?

    So no grains means no puffed rice either,I guess...

    Thank you!

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  25. Yes...a warm drink is a great way to use it. I make a big bowl of vegetables every morning to have available throughout the day whenever someone wants soup. They just put in some broth and throw in the vegetables...mashed cauliflower is a great way to use it. When I make beef stock I freeze in ice cube trays and then use them to add to meat dishes.

    Yes..the puffed rice would be out...it's quite a chemical process anyway which can be disrupting to the body.

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