Homemade Veggie Broth

It’s been a chilly few days here in Colorado, which gets me excited for warm comfort foods like a good ‘ol hearty soup. They key to a good bowl of soup, is the perfect broth and do you know how easy making a homemade broth actually is? I didn’t until recently and can’t believe I haven’t been making my own for years.

Store bought broth can be a little pricey, contain unnecessary preservatives, and in my opinion, doesn’t taste nearly as good as making your own. All you have to do to make your own broth is save and freeze all your leftover vegetable scraps. Being a vegetarian, my veggie scrap bag doesn’t take long to fill. I just keep it in the freezer and pull it out when I’m cutting veggies.

So, what veggies can you save for your own vegetable broth?
Nearly anything but keep in mind some vegetables will provide better flavor. Considering the big flavors that make up a broth, I always try to have a large portion of:

• Onion ends and/or thick skins

• Carrot ends and peels

• Celery ends

Then I toss in all these leftovers when I have them:

• The ends and core of peppers, including jalapeños

• Green onion pieces

• Mushroom stems

• Ends of Leeks

• Tomato ends

• Garlic

• Fennel

• Asparagus ends

• Leftover herbs

There are some vegetables though that you might want to avoid as it can make your broth a little bitter:

• Zucchini

• Broccoli

• Cauliflower

• Brussel sprouts

• Cabbage

Ingredients

• ½ - 1 gallon-sized freezer bag of vegetable scraps

• 9-12 cups of water

• Salt & pepper

• 2 bay leaves

Instructions

1. Save all your vegetable scraps and store in a gallon freezer bag in your freezer. This can include peels, ends and cores.

2. Once your freezer bag is pretty full (about 5-6 cups of frozen veggie scraps), cook your scraps by placing them in a large pot, then add enough water to barely cover the veggies (about 9 cups).

3. Add 1 tsp. of salt & pepper and 2 bay leaves (optional).

4. Cover your pot and cook on low to medium-low heat for about 1 ½ - 2 hours. NOTE: You may need to add extra water if it starts to evaporate too quickly.

5. Let your broth cool completely.

6. Strain the vegetables from the liquid using a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl. Add salt to taste if needed and transfer the broth to mason jars or plastic freezer bags.

7. Compost or discard the vegetable scraps.

8. You can store your broth in the refrigerator for up to 1-week, or in the freezer for up to 2-months.

9. Don’t forget to throw your veggie scraps freezer bag back in the freezer and let it fill back up!

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