Bone broth has become increasingly popular, especially through the Paleo diet. You can buy it at the grocery store or make your own. There are even bone broth shops and deliveries.

But what is bone broth, what are its benefits, how do you make it, and what options do vegans and vegetarians have? You will find out all these answers in this article.

What Is Bone Broth?

Bone broth is a broth of a soup that is thinner than a regular stock and made with actual eating, not meat-stripped bones. It is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals and offers plenty of health benefits, including joint health, gut health, glowing skin, and weight loss.

Bone Broth Benefits

Bone broth can bring many benefits to your health, including: 

• Protecting your joints
• Promoting gut health
• Aiding digestion
• Maintaining healthy skin
• Supporting your immune function
• Helping detoxification
• Boosting your metabolism
• Helping weight loss
• Fighting cancer

Bone Broth Nutrition

Bone broth is filled with nutritional benefits, including:

• Glycosaminoglycans to maintain and support collagen and elastin
• Glucosamine for joint health
• Hyaluronic acid for skin firmness and anti-aging
• Chondroitin sulfate for joint health, cardiovascular health, bone health, skin health, and healthy cholesterol levels
• Minerals and electrolytes, including calcium, magnesium, and potassium for healthy circulation, bone density, nerve signaling functions, heart health, and digestive health
• Collagen for bone and joint health
• Gelatin for digestion, joint health, cellulitis, and immune health
• Amino acids for bone, joint, muscle, gut, hormonal, and mental health

How Much Bone Broth Should You Drink?

Drink a minimum of 8 ounces of bone broth for maximum health benefits. For a short period, you may drink 16-32 ounces a day to boost your health and cleanse your body.

Bone Broth Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds (or more) of bones from a healthy source
• 2 chicken feet for extra gelatin (optional)
• 1 onion
• 3 carrots
• 1 stalk of celery
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 2 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns
• Any other herbs or spices you like for taste
• 2 cloves of garlic for the last 30 minutes of cooking

Directions:

1. If you are using raw bones, roast them at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.
2. Place bones in a large stockpot. Add water to fill it and the vinegar.
3. Let it sit for 20-30 minutes.
4. Add the vegetables, herbs, and spices.
5. Bring it to boil, then simmer.
6. For the first few hours of simmering, remove any impurities that are part of the foamy layer. Throw this removed foam away.
7. Add the garlic at the last 30 minutes.
8. Remove from heat when it’s all done.
9. Strain it into another pot.
10. Drink it immediately. You can keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze it.

Vegan Broth

While traditional bone broth is for omnivores, vegans and vegetarians can also enjoy a similarly healthy broth. A vegan broth is obviously made without meat, bones, or other animal products, however, it is filled with wonderful healing properties, such as:

• Spinach and kale for minerals and vitamins
• Wakame seaweed for omega-3s, vitamins, and minerals
• Shiitake mushrooms for prebiotics, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals
• Coconut oil for healthy fat
• Turmeric for inflammation
• Coconut aminos for amino acids

Ingredients:

• 12 cups or 2 3/4 liters filtered water
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 red onion quartered (with skins)
• 2 garlic bulbs smashed
• 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger roughly chopped (with skin)
• 1 cup greens such as kale or spinach
• 4 cups mixed chopped vegetables and peelings (e.g. carrot peelings, red cabbage, fresh mushrooms, and celery)
• 1/2 cup dried shiitake mushrooms
• 30 g dried wakame seaweed
• 1 tablespoon peppercorns
• 3 tablespoons ground turmeric
• 1 tablespoon coconut aminos
• A bunch of fresh coriander or other herbs of your choice
• ⅛ cup nutritional yeast flakes

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to a large pot.
2. Bring to a boil then simmer for about an hour. Keep the lid on while simmering.
3. Once it’s all cooked, strain the liquid into a large bowl.
4. Serve immediately with some fresh herbs, or freeze it for later.

Bone broths are increasingly popular nutrient-dense drinks that are great for joint health, gut health, glowing skin, and weight loss, and your overall health. You can make them at home, buy them at the store, or order them online. If you are a vegan or vegetarian, there are bone-less, animal-free, equally nutritious plant-based options for you to try.

Have you ever tried bone broth? What benefits have you experienced? Share your answers in the comments, we would love to hear from you.

References

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18416885
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3358810/
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14600124
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23949208
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/11035691/
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14988435
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23835111
8. https://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2015-04/n-acetylglucosamine-treatment-inflammatory-bowel-disease
9. https://www.webmd.com/vitamins-and-supplements/supplement-guide-glucosamine
10. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583886/
11. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583886/
12. https://www.webmd.com/diet/supplement-guide-chondroitin
13. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/naughty-nutrition/201202/taking-stock-soup-healing-body-mind-mood-and-soul
14. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21795440