Posted on 02/25/2022 4:55:47 PM PST by nickcarraway
Do you remember being ill as a child and being given a soothing bowl of hot chicken soup to help you feel better? Sick or not, most Malaysians would have grown up drinking Grandma’s homemade soup that often would have more bone in it than meat.
The recipe would almost always be the same: hot water, bone, vegetables – usually cabbage or carrot – and a variety of herbs and spices, left on the stove to bubble away for hours. Sometimes, it would be kept overnight and reboiled the next day – only to taste so much better!
This time-honoured meal is, in effect, a type of bone broth, where animal bones are cooked in liquid for hours to extract all the goodness out of the marrow. Used to make soups, gravies, stews and sauces, bone broth has a multitude of health benefits, in addition to tasting absolutely delicious!
Bone broth contains nutrients that are important for the human body and promote wellness in various ways. Here are some of the benefits of consuming this hearty elixir.
Healing and wellbeing
The bones and connective tissue in bone broth are solid sources of type II collagen, which helps maintain the smoothness and suppleness of your skin while keeping your teeth and bones strong and healthy.
Bone broth is also chock-full of all kinds of anti-inflammatory amino acids and minerals that aid the body in natural healing, helping you recover from injuries, scratches, arthritis and more at a much quicker rate.
In Chinese culture, bone broth is popular as a digestive tonic. It helps improve chronic digestive conditions such as leaky gut syndrome, which affects the lining of the intestines.
This condition has no symptoms in the early stages but affects almost 70% of the population. To combat this, the collagen from bone broth helps seal holes and repair tears. It restores the strength of the gut lining, and helps with the growth of good bacteria.
Joint healing
Bone broth contains amino acids, hyaluronic acid, glucosamine, chondroitin, calcium and magnesium. These nutrients reduce joint pain and inflammation, making bones and muscles stronger.
As people age, their joints experience wear and tear, and bodies become less flexible. Bones lose cartilage and scrape against each other, which causes a considerable amount of pain, especially for older folks.
The collagen and nutrients in bone broth help lessen the pressure on ageing joints and ease bodily aches.
Collagen face masks help with beauty, but regularly consuming bone broth could produce the same, if not better, effects. (Envato Elements pic) For pregnant mothers, bone broth should be a staple as your growing child will also reap the benefits from your consuming it. Baby can be assured of healthier bones and joints, and a stronger digestive system.
Broth and beauty Collagen plays a big part in the beauty industry. It forms elastin and helps maintain the skin’s youthful tone and texture, reducing signs of ageing and puffiness.
As you drink more bone broth, you will see visible improvements in your hair and nails as collagen helps strengthen them and increase growth.
Not to mention, the price of one jar of face cream alone could probably buy you a month’s worth of meaty bones!
Ta-ta, toxins
Bone broth is considered a powerful detoxifying agent that helps the digestive system get rid of waste, improve use of antioxidants, and maintain tissue integrity. Regularly drinking broth can boost the immune system and even help in overcoming food allergies.
When consumed alongside veggies, garlic and herbs, bone broth can supply your body with a good dose of sulphur and glutathione – components that lower oxidative stress.
This, in turn, helps the body get rid of fat-soluble compounds and metals such as mercury and lead.
Don’t miss tomorrow’s recipe so you, too, can make your own delicious pot of bone broth! (Envato Elements pic) Sounder sleep
Most people don’t get the required average of eight hours of sleep a day, but here’s a solution: drinking bone broth for dinner can improve sleep quality and reduce daytime drowsiness.
The glycine in bone broth will work on the body’s central nervous system to relax your muscles, providing you with restful slumber. Goodbye, sleepless nights!
Check back in tomorrow to find out how to make this wonderful, natural concoction right on your own stovetop.
This article was written by Emma Elizabeth Sim for butterkicap.com.
Butterkicap is a food and culture platform and community that enables anyone to experience Malaysia through stories of its people, food and places.
I eat a lot of homemade chicken soup and I almost never get sick. Not even on Friday nights.
Bone broth is awesome. Collagen is key. It’s the body’s glue.
Bkmk
I’m a big fan. For whatever reason, here in MA, I’ve hard trouble finding material. I’m in the middle of nowhere. It’s a bit of a trip, by Whole Foods has chicken backs (frozen) and I know of an Asian market that carries knuckle bones, chicken feet, and split pig’s feet. Once in a whole I stock up on parts and then try to make a batch of broth once a week.
For later
Got a recipe, made some from chicken bones. It was bleh, a waste of electricity. I do, however, buy organic beef or chicken bone broth in cartons. Kroger has good one with low-sodium, and various other places have other brands.
Then just toss chicken legs and thighs or stew beef into the pot with tons of veggies, and simmer slowly for a delish meal. Little red potatoes, carrots, celery are the usual and I also like parsnips, turnips and sometimes rutabaga. a clove of garlic squeezed through garlic press. Chopped onions if you like them.
Really whatever you like. There’s no wrong way to make stew, nor to make salad for that matter.
Other great thing about it is making enough for three or four days and freezing what you don’t eat.
Do you have to soak or clean the chicken feet before you start cooking them down? I’ve been wanting to do this.
“Sing a song, don’t be long
Thrill me to the marrow”
Collagen is also great for the skin and hair. I buy “Ancient Nutrition” Multi-Collagen Protein and toss it in water with some raspberry electrolytes. Drink it after breakfast with my vitamins.
Organic chicken. Mirapoix - onion, celery, carrots, garlic- cover with cold water. 20 hours in slow cooker. All the collagen comes out. Now you have broth and meat. That’s where I start.
I can’t cook but I hang around people who can and do.
I’ve been served bone broth on occasion. Every time, needs a little something but I have no idea what. Or maybe something less of something!
I learned about bone broth years ago on Free Republic from Greeneyes. She would have loved this article.
G
My wife boils up this wretched stuff; the smell just about kills me. But she swears by it.
When we want some old-fashioned ingredients we have to go to one of the ethnic markets (Chinese, Hispanic, Indian, Italian etc.). Things like chicken feet, a “soup chicken” (i.e., an old chicken), pork necks, beef knuckles, or some other unusual ingredient or spice.
I put all the bones (and feet) in a big pot of cold water, heat that to boiling, boil it all for 5 minutes and then dump it out into a colander and rinse with cold water. That’s a blanche. That’s basically my first step — it’s supposed to remove some impurities and make skimming the stock less of a chore during the rest of the process.
It’s not a necessary step and I guess a lot of people don’t do it. Technically, the feet should be clean when you buy them, but, I mean: they are feet. So I feel better if I clean them with a quick boil, and the blanche does that as well as help get some junk off the other bones.
Also, for a white stock, you’d start over with the bones in water and start the long simmer — but for a brown stock you’d want to roast the bones at 400 for maybe 45 minutes before beginning that long simmering process. My wife is a little sensitive and she doesn’t like the smell of roasting bones in the oven. But if I blanche the bones first, the oven roast produces a much reduced smell. Seems like a Win-Win.
For people with gout, bone broth is close to poison.
Can easily trigger an attack. Too bad for them....it tastes great.
Many thanks, great information! One last question: after the 5 minute blanch boil do you roast the feet too? Do you mix your chicken & beef together or do only beef or only chicken?
Lots of people mix the bones. I don’t, because my nature is very “Either This or That”. I want chicken broth or I want beef broth. I don’t mix — but that’s really just me.
Some books will say not to roast the feet, but I do. Doesn’t seem to cause any harm.
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