Slow Cooker Beef Bone Broth Recipe (what ingredients, cook time, bones) (2024)

If you haven’t heard about the benefits of bone broth, we’re here to fill you in. Bone broth is made by simmering bones with water and vegetables for a long time, thereby extracting a host of benefits.

In order to get the amazing benefits of bone broth, you’ll need to make your own (or buy from a trusted brand). Below, we share one of our favorite bone broth recipes, but first let’s discuss some of the amazing benefits of bone broth.

The Benefits of Bone Broth

When you drink bone broth, the slow cooking process extracts the various nutrients. Bone brothcontains collagen, amino acids, and minerals, all of which are needed to support overall health. Here’s an overview of the specific benefitsof bone broth.

Can Help Support the Gut

Approximately 70% of immune system cells are found in the gut (2). Poor gut health can lead to a number of health problems.

There is strong evidence that collagen — found in bone broth— plays a role in supporting gut health (1). Collagen is the most abundant protein found in the body, present in your ligaments, tendons, and bones. When you simmer animal bones in water, it extracts collagen and gelatin, which play a role in gut health.

Supports the Immune System

Bone brothhas been used around the world for centuries. Bone broth contains amino acids, four of which make up the bulk of the protein content.Proline, glycine, glutamine, and arginine are the amino acidsfound in bone broth, which have been shown to enhance your immune system (3)

Supports Inflammatory Response

Glycine, proline, arginine, and glutamine — the main amino acidsfound in bone broth— help support inflammatory response.

Bone brothcontains glucosamine and chondroitin, both of which have anti-inflammatoryproperties. Reducing inflammation in the body can also prevent the onset of other health complications.

Supports Joint Health

Bone broth contains naturally-occurring collagen. Collagen contains proline and glycine, all of which are key to supporting joint health.

Supports Better Sleep

Bone brothmay be the perfect nighttime sleep elixirfor a variety of reasons. It’s an essential source of magnesium, which synthesizes proteins, transmits nerve signals, and relaxes the muscles to support restful sleep (8). It contains the amino acidglycine, an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brainstem and spinal cord (9). It’s the primary neurotransmitter that inhibits sleep cycle motor neurons during active sleep (10).

Supports Weight Loss

Bone broth may support weight loss, particularly when you implement a bone brothdiet. This diet cuts out problematic foods that can lead to weight gain and impaired digestion, including grains, refined sugar, and legumes. A bone brothdiet replaces these foods with high-quality animal proteins and vegetables, and can also be combined with intermittent fasting.

Promotes Healthy Skin

The collagen in bone brothsupports healthy skin (12).

Since collagen has so many benefits related to skin health, beauty companies have started using it in their products. It’s not uncommon to see eye creams or moisturizers with collagen as an ingredient.

Boosts Energy Levels

Forget your morning coffee — thanks to its beneficial properties, bone broth may help naturally increase your energy levels. Minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus all play an important role in oxygen transport and energy production (13). Once the minerals are released, they’re highly bioavailable, making them easily absorbed.

The Difference Between Bone Broth, Broth, and Stock

There is a lot of confusion between homemade bone broth, the broth you purchase at the store, and stock. While all three terms are often (mistakenly) used interchangeably, there are two differences you should note: ingredients and cooking time.

Chicken bone broth, commonly made with meaty bones, can take up to 24 hours to simmer. Chicken broth, on the other hand, is made with clean bones and can be made in half the time.

How to Make Bone Broth

You can make bone broththrough any combination of animal bones, water, and herbs. If you want to make chicken bone broth, you’ll use chicken bones, such as chicken feet, knuckle bones, neck bones, or a carcass leftover from a whole chicken. Then, you’ll combine the bones with bay leaves, Italianherbs, garlic cloves, chopped vegetables, and water. You can view a great chicken broth recipe here.

Below, you’ll learn to make beef broth, which is typically made from beef marrow bonesor a beef shank. Then you’ll place all ingredients in a Crock-Pot to simmer on low heatfor 24 hours.

You can make bone brothin a stock poton a low simmeron the stovetop, in an Instant Potor pressure cooker, or in a slow cooker. You can learn how to make bone broththree different ways here. If you choose to make your bone brothin a Instant Pot, you will need to cut the cooking timein half.

You can store your bone brothin sealed mason jarsor you can freeze them in ice cube trays.

Make Bone Brothat Home

If you’d like to try making homemade bone broth, there are plenty of simple bone broth recipes. Here’s our tried and true beef bone brothversion, so give it a try the next timeyou try to make bone brothat home.

We recommend you use high-quality, grass-fedbones for the ultimate nutrient-containing broth. Roasting the bones before simmering them and tossing in some organic vegetables gives it even more flavor and nutrients. Feel free to add a dash of sea saltand black peppercornsfor extra flavor before enjoying as well.

One of our long-time customers have been making beef bone broth according to this recipe for a very long time, then eventually stopped. Find out why.

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