Yeah, I’m trying to be a little tricky here with this bone business, but basically this is a really nourishing broth to get you through the sub zero months ahead (insert crying emoji).
Of course there’s no real bones in here, but there *is* kale bones aka stems and just like real bones, kale has tons of calcium!
This is a very “choose your own adventure” type of broth scenario. You can use it as a base for soups and stews, you can have it on it’s own as a little afternoon warm-up, you can add miso or pasta too it…it’s just a great all purpose broth! And like most broth recipes, don’t be restricted to my list here, use what you’ve got! I use powdered shiitake mushrooms and ume plum paste in mine which I happened to have, and they definitely add an umami snap that is undeniable, but don’t let not having them stop ya, there’s lots of optional add-ins!
If you’re actively fighting off a cold, try doubling up on the ginger and garlic!
Makes approx 6 cups broth
Ingredients:
14 cups water
1 onion chopped rough with skin on
2 leeks cleaned well and chopped rough
3” fresh ginger root, sliced or grated
1” fresh turmeric root, sliced or grated
4 cloves garlic, crushed with skin on
3 celery stalks chopped rough
2 carrots chopped rough
leftover stalks from a bundle of kale (or collards!)
A bunch of parsley (with about 1/4 cup put aside to throw in afterwards)
1/3 cup dried shiitake mushrooms, pulverized to a powder
1 tsp whole peppercorns
2 bay leaves
3T coconut oil, will melt into broth. Please don’t skip, this is the vehicle that fat soluble nutrients (like calcium!) are using to get absorbed into that beautiful bod!
1 piece of dry kombu seaweed
1 tablespoon ume plum paste (or ume vinegar!)
*salt to taste* unless you intend to add miso later, then leave it unsalted
Add everything to a large stock pot, bring it to boil and lower to a medium simmer for about 3 hours. Afterwards I let it cool on the stovetop until it’s manageable and I squeeze it through a fine mesh bag (typically used for nut or seed milks). You can also just use a pasta strainer to strain out all the add-ins if you have another big pot to catch all that delicious strained broth!
Store in the fridge in a couple of mason jars for a week or so (can also be frozen!). You'll see the coconut oil will separate a bit, but it's honestly no biggie.
Other add-in ideas:
As you can see, the broth world is your oyster. Add whatever you like, and create your own magical savoury stock.