Bone Broth ( slow cooker)

Bone broth is chock full of nutrients. Rich in calcium, magnesium, phosphorous 

etc, all of which are easily absorbed making it great for the immune system, joints, digestion, inflammation, stress and much more. Any animal bones can be used to make a broth, including chicken, beef, lamb and pork. These can be marrow bones, knuckle bones, neck bones, ribs, oxtails, whatever you can get hold of. Acid is necessary to help extract the minerals from the bones, so by adding vinegar this aids in getting those vital nutrients from the bones. Roasting the bones first helps develop a meatier flavour to the broth, but this is entirely optional. Bone broth can be used for a variety of things, drink it as a soup, add to gravy, stews, any recipe that requires liquid.

Ingredients

1-2 kg various bones, I used lamb off cut bones

2-3 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

3 celery sticks, roughly chopped

1 onion, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 Tsp ground Turmeric

2 bay leaves

1 Tsp cracked black peppercorns

8 cups cold water, or enough to cover ingredients by a few inches

Method

1. If roasting bones, preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Place bones in a single layer on a large baking tray, drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil, tossing to evenly cover. Roast for 30 - 40 minutes, to get a rich brown colour, turning once half way through.

2.  Once bones are roasted, place them in the slow cooker, add vegetables and garlic, mix to combine. Cover with approx 8 cups of cold water, or enough to submerge bones and vegetables by a few inches.

3.  Add the apple cider vinegar, turmeric, bay leaves and cracked peppercorns, gently mix through.

4. Put slow cooker onto LOW setting and cook for at least 8 hours, the longer you cook the broth, the more taste and nutrients come from the bones. Occasionally skimming off foam and excess fat from the top.  Add more water if required to keep ingredients fully submerged.

5.  Strain the broth, discard bones and vegetables. (If there is meat on the bones, you can pick it off and use in a stir fry, pie, curry etc, I used the meat to make a shepherds pie for tea), then leave to cool at room temperature. Once cool, remove the top layer of fat then refrigerate or freeze. Broth will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Season and enjoy as a nutritious lunch