Gelatinous Bone Broth With Chicken Bones (Slow Cooker Recipe)

🌟 About This Recipe

• This rich bone broth recipe makes 3 liters (12 cups) of chicken stock that you can use to make soups, stews, risottos, and more.
• This is a budget-friendly recipe that uses chicken carcasses that are cheap to buy.
• Homemade chicken stock tastes so much better than store-bought stocks, and you know what has gone into it.
• This gelatinous chicken broth by itself is a healthy a nutritious drink.
• You can make this slow cooker chicken stock recipe even on your busiest day because it can be left to simmer for up to 24 hours.

Making Stock In A Slow Cooker Verses Stove Top

Making chicken stock in a slow cooker is convenient, especially if you don’t have time to look after something on the stove. It gives you the freedom to do other things in and out of the home.

Using the slow cooker ensures an even low cooking temperature which is ideal for cooking marrow bones. Because it slowly draws out the goodness from the bones like collagen, which is essential for rebuilding bones and connective tissue.

Even though you are limited to the amount of broth you can make in a slow cooker, you still get a decent amount so that you can make a few healthy meals during the week.

🥘 Ingredients

Please note that below is a guide for some of the ingredients we used in the recipe. The printable recipe further down the page has the complete list of ingredients, including quantities and step-by-step instructions.

When making bone broth, keep it a neutral flavor so this way you can use it for just about any recipe that calls for chicken bone broth or stock.

Some stock recipes will use a bay leaf or thyme to flavor the stock. However, these flavors can limit the number of dishes you can make because they do not go well in many Asian recipes.

Instead, use onion, garlic, carrot, celery, a few black peppercorns, and a little salt. These flavors make a good stock that you can use to make many international recipes.

Also, when making stock in the slow cooker, you are making a small batch of stock, so avoid adding too much onion and celery. Too much of these can ruin the flavor of the stock.

It is best to use a medium onion and a maximum of two celery stalks (ribs) and not the celery leaves.

You can also add 1 teaspoon of salt. The salt is just for flavor and is optional.

🍽 Equipment

We use a basic 6.5 liter (6 quarts) slow cooker that has only three settings low, high, and auto.

It is large enough to hold 3 liters (12 cups) of water and 2 kg (4.4 pounds) chicken bones and some veggies.

🍳 Instructions

Step 1 - Roughly chop the vegetables, then spread them out over the base of the slow cooker. Then add the chicken carcasses squashing them into the slow cooker to make them fit. 

Next, add up to 3 liters (12 cups) of water to almost fill the slow cooker. Leave about a 2 cm (0.8 inches) space at the top of the slow cooker, because you don't want to overfill it because it can bubble over and make a mess.

Before putting the lid on the slow cooker, try and get most of the bones to sit under the water, but it is okay to have a few pieces slightly above if you can squash them all flat. However, make sure that the lid fits correctly on the slow cooker.

Turn the slow cooker to low and cook for about 12 - 15 hours.

Step 2 - After the cooking time, switch the slow cooker off, remove the lid and let the stock cool for about one hour before staining.

Then strain the stock through a fine-meshed sieve over a large container to remove the chicken bones and vegetables.

Discard the vegetables and chicken bones because you no longer need them.

Step 3 - Next, strain the stock again through a double layer of cheesecloth sitting inside the sieve.

Passing the stock through a double layer of cheesecloth helps remove any fine sediment and leaves you with a clear golden broth.

Step 4 - As you strain the stock through the cheesecloth, the sediment will build up in the cloth. This sediment will make the stock pass through the cheesecloth at a slower rate.

When this happens use a spoon to stir the sediment, scraping the bottom of the cloth to make the broth flow more freely.

When you have finished straining the broth, throw out the sediment and wash and dry the cheesecloth to reuse another day.

Step 5 - As the stock cools you will see a thin creamy layer form on top of the broth, this is chicken fat. 

Chicken fat is not healthy to eat and should be removed. The easiest way to remove the fat is when the chicken broth is well chilled. 

Allow to stock to cool to room temperature, then store covered in the fridge for at least 48 hours before removing the fat.

This time will allow the stock to cool completely, and the broth gels and the fat will turn into a soft whitish layer.

Step 6 - Use a tablespoon to skim the soft fat layer from the top of the stock. Remove as much as you can without picking up too much of the gelatinous bone broth.

Step 7 – When you have removed as much fat as you can with a spoon, use strips of absorbent paper to lift away any remaining fat.

Step 8 – After removing the fat, you will be left with a thick gelatinous stock that is fat-free.

Step 9 – The above image shows what the stock should look like when finished. It should be nice and thick and jelly-like.

👪 Serving Size

This recipe make about 3 litres (12 cups) of stock.

🍬 Calories Per Serve

One cup of homemade chicken stock is about 60 calories.

🌡️ Storage

Store the gelatinous bone broth in clean and dry sealable jars or containers in the fridge for up to four days and use it as needed. For longer storage see our freezing instructions below.

How To Freeze Chicken Stock?

Transfer the stock and freeze in 750ml – 1 liter (3 or 4 cups) size freezer-safe containers.

These sizes are ideal as most recipes will use either 750 ml (3 cups), 1 liter (4 cups), or 1.5 liters (6 cups).

You can freeze the gelatinous bone broth for up to 12 months.

How To Defrost Stock?

There are several ways to defrost chicken stock.

• You can place it in the microwave and melt the chicken stock slowly on the defrost cycle.
• You can place the container in some hot water to melt and loosen the stock from the container. Then transfer the frozen block to a saucepan and continue to melt over low heat. 
• Remove the stock from the freezer and place it in the fridge for 24 - 48 hours. 

📝 FAQ

🍲 More Easy Recipes

• Slow cooker custard
• Slow cooker bolognese sauce
• Slow cooker pulled pork
• Chicken potsticker soup 

So, now you know how to make a gelatinous bone broth with chicken bones, please try it.

I would love to hear from you if you have tried the recipe. Please come back and drop a comment below and tell me how it went.