(Hopefully she won't be mad at me for the funny picture.)
Bestie can make broth like nobody's business. She has the roaster set up and saves the bones from whatever she cooks and lets the veggies and bones simmer for a long time to make the most rich and flavorful broth. She can make broth out of anything. She even makes broth from veggie scraps. She has the patience to wait for the nicest product. The best batch I've had so far was onion broth. I used it on roast and it was fantastic! Below is a photo of the deliciousness she shared recently for the canning of the turkey:
Bestie and I are not the same. I do not have patience. I want to get the product made and put into a jar and on the shelf. I'll admit it, I'm a cheater when it comes to this. I have such a tendency to try and do too much in the kitchen at once. That means that when I'm making broth, I'm using the Instant Pots** and getting as much yield in as little time as possible. The broth is nice, it isn't fantastic like Bestie's.
Here's my own process: get some bones and some veggies. You can use a turkey or chicken carcass that you've deboned. You can use the soup bones from the locker. You can even use the bones from the pork chops you had for dinner. It's best to have an amount that will fill the Instant Pot about halfway. Add in vegetables; carrots, celery, onions, and garlic for sure. I also add some salt, pepper, and parsley. Add water up to the max fill line. This is the base recipe for whatever kind of broth you're gonna make. Set the Instant Pot for pressure cook for 1 hour, close the vent. Once the time is up, open the vent to depressurize.
When the Instant Pot is able to be opened, there will be a nice broth along with some slightly tired vegetables and bones. PUT A BOWL UNDER THE COLANDER and strain the broth from the veggies and bones. Set the broth in the fridge to cool.
Place the bones and veggies back in the Instant Pot. Add salt, pepper, and parsley in again. Set the Instant Pot to pressure cook for an hour, close the vent. When the time is up, open the vent to depressurize.
Open the Instant Pot and PLACE A BOWL UNDER THE COLANDER. Strain the bones and veggies from the broth. Set the broth in the fridge to cool.
If you feel that the ingredients still have some life left, you can repeat the process over and over until the broth doesn't have much color or flavor. This last go round, I ran the turkey bones through 6 times and added fresh vegetables at round 3. This gave me a total 5 gallons of broth. (I have an entire shelf of broth now.) The broth isn't at thin and pekid as commercial broth, but it isn't as rich and delicious as Bestie's slow-cooked version.
Cool the broth in the fridge overnight. Spoon the fat off and save it. I have several gallon pitchers that I use to store the broth before canning. They make it so easy to pour the broth into the jars. Here's the BIG cheat: I add a couple tablespoons of powdered soup base** into each gallon of broth. Match the flavor of the soup base** to the broth you're making. There's salt and seasoning in the soup base that I haven't been able to replicate. I know that when I go to use this, it will be flavored correctly and ready to use for whatever kind of soup or gravy I need to make.
Then pour the broth into the prepared jars, wipe rims, lid up and process for 25 min at 10 lbs of pressure.
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