Homemade Chicken Broth

5 from 47 votes

This homemade chicken broth recipe is delicious and an excellent way to use leftover chicken scraps and vegetables. It's easy to make, costs less, and is much more flavorful than store-bought. Make a big batch and keep it on hand for all of your recipes that call for broth.

Prep Time10

Cook Time2

Total Time2 10

Course: Soup, Soups & Stews

Cuisine: American

Servings: cups

Equipment

Ingredients

1 lb bones/leftovers from rotisserie chicken or whole cooked chicken scraps
4 stalks celery
4 whole carrots
1 head garlic unpeeled and halved
2 whole bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
1 whole onion
6 cups water
5 sprigs fresh thyme

Instructions

Add all of the ingredients to a large pot.
Bring it to a boil and then turn it down to a simmer.
Let it simmer for 2-3 hours. The longer it simmers, the better the flavor.
Remove from the heat and strain the mixture into a large bowl using a fine mesh strainer.
Set the bowl with the broth aside to cool.
Once it has cooled, skim the fat from the top.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge or freeze it for later.

Notes

Keep your leftover vegetable scraps in a ziplock bag in the freezer. You can throw them into the pot whenever you get ready to make broth and they won't go to waste.
You can also add all of the ingredients to a slow cooker and let it cook for 8-10 hours.
It's best to use a fine mesh strainer for the best results.
Cooling the broth before storing is important to skim the fat and to also have the best results for storing.

Nutrition