Learn how to use *any* bones to make fast, nourishing bone broth with your Instant Pot!
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This has been a game changer friends!
Honestly I have spent years without thought simmering my bone broth stovetop or through the night in a slow cooker. It has become such second nature that when I started hearing about people using their pressure cookers to make bone broth in just a couple hours I sort of skimmed right past. I had my “routine”. My method.
And with a house full of kids, autopilot is crucial to my daily flow!
I wasn’t convinced I would switch making my bone broth to my Instant Pot
when I received it last fall. Because it is smaller than what I typically make bone broth in, I couldn’t see myself making bone broth more frequently to equal the amount I was making once a month in my slow cooker, huge stockpot, or oven roaster.
And then this year happened! Busier school and homework schedules, an added preschool schedule to the elementary routine, a book deal & daily blog work, and a feisty toddler have really dwindled my kitchen hours down.
I have to be smart about my kitchen time.
And the Instant Pot helps me do that. Bone broth can be made so hands free and fast. There is no planning out to remember to turn off the slow cooker – or planning to be home while the stockpot on the stove simmers for hours and hours. And the gel! Oh that glorious, nourishing gel is still there as well as all the maintained properties of properly prepared bone broth!
If you are new to bone broth, this recipe is for you! You can’t find a more nourishing, power packed food – period! If you have never read “Broth Is Beautiful”, I highly recommend it so you can fully understand what amazing food you are making!
If you are a seasoned bone broth foodie, this recipe is for you too! If your little heart pitter patters every time you get to use your stock pot to make something amazing…don’t worry. You don’t have to retire your beloved pot! Use your Instant Pot to your advantage when your time is short. Leverage your kitchen time – you will have more bone broth on hand to make those amazing slow cooked soups at the stove 😉
A quick note on the bones!
Rich, flavorful broth comes from bones that have been cooked, so if you happen to pick up bones from your farmer at the market (sometimes called beef soup bones, or marrow bones), or you have a load of bones from ordering a half or whole cow or pig, or from that big deer hunt, just give those raw bones a quick roast before using them for broth. I typically just toss them on a sheet pan and roast them at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. If you are making a beef roast or whole chicken in the Instant Pot, you can just toss the bones right back into the IP after you strip the meat for your broth making! So easy!
Instant Pot Bone Broth
Ingredients
- Cooked bones/carcass of chicken learn how to do a whole chicken in your IP HERE!, cow, deer, turkey, pig etc depending on what you have (I like about half of the pot to be bones/carcass. You can freeze whatever bones don't fit for another time.)
- 1-2 chicken feet optional depending on if you have access - it gives really good gel to the broth. Ask your chicken farmer for them!
- 1-2 large carrots coarsely chopped
- 1 medium onion coarsely chopped
- 2-3 stalks of celery coarsely chopped
- 1 head of garlic smashed
- 1-2 TB apple cider vinegar
- Water enough to cover the bones
Instructions
- Put the bones into the pot first followed by the veggies, garlic, and apple cider vinegar. Fill the pot with water to cover the bones - be sure you don't go over the "Max" line on the pot.
- Let the pot sit for about 30 minutes without any heat to let the apple cider vinegar pull the minerals from the bones.
- Put the Instant Pot lid on and turn the vent valve to closed. Push "Soup" and use the manual button to bring the time up to 120 minutes.
- The pot will turn "On" automatically and will take about 20 minutes to come to pressure before the 120 minutes starts counting down.
- After the 120 minutes of pressure cooking is done, turn the Instant Pot off and leave it be to naturally release about 15 minutes before opening the vent valve and straining your broth.
For more Instant Pot recipes, you can follow my Instant Pot Recipes board on Pinterest!
More real food recipes you might like:
Instant Pot Whole Chicken
Instant Pot Italian Sausage Stew
15 Minute Chicken Tortilla Soup
Renee: I am making my second batch of bone broth now in my IP. This is such a great recipe. Both times i have forgotten to let it sit 30 mins with the vinegar (next time) and I have left out the vegetables, but it is still fabulous. Thanks for the recipe. Bone broth has so many health benefits, and at this time I have a fussy 18 year old male cat that gets a lot of this each day as he needs the fluids and the nutrients. Thanks again.
I once had a neighbour that took in a stray cat. This cat got sick and refused food or drink. She told me and broth immediately came to mind. I didn’t have any homemade at the time, but just packaged. Well, that cat took the broth and recovered nicely
Hi! I made bone broth last night following your advice with my instant pot – I’m a beginner! I THINK it turned out the way it should but I’m confused about the gel, this is new to me. There seems to be quite a bit – and I’m not sure what to do with it. I also am not sure how to tell the difference between gel and fat – and if I should skim the fat off of the broth (this makes sense as I put the fat drippings from the roasted bones in with the broth…. not sure if that’s ideal, I just happen to be one of those “fat is good” people 🙂
All this said, THANK YOU for making such a welcoming page and easy to follow tutorial. You made it VERY easy to follow even for instant pot AND broth novices like me!
Hi Sam! The gel is good! Your bones must have been full of collagen! Great! You will see the fat rise to the top after it cools in the fridge. The bone broth will “melt” once heated and used for soup or whatever you are using it for! You can skim the fat off before you cook – I tend to skim it off and save it for cooking or frying. I hope that helps!
the fat is off white and solid and will form a cap on the top of the jar once the broth has been chilled or cooled. You can just throw away the fat cap. Some people save it, though, and use it as a healthy fat for cooking if they used organic or pasture- raised poultry or meat, or grass-fed, antibiotic free. The point is you would only save the fat if you know it’s healthy.
Thank you for explaining about the gel. I was ready to throw a pot of venison broth away because it gelled! If I make soup from it, will the soup gel?
Hi Debbie! Yes don’t throw it away! The soup will gel when in the fridge, but it will become liquid when heated 🙂
hey there – I am doing the whole chicken in the Instant Pot this afternoon… after I pick the meat off, I want to do Bone Broth.
The chicken I bought has a packet of gizzards included – what can be done with them? Thank you!
Hi Jessica! I’d toss those organ meats right into your bone broth making for sure! Lots of nutrients!
I love doing bone broth in my IP. Great tutorial.
After straining, you can put the broth back in the pot again and sautee until it is reduced in volume for concentrated broth. This is great to save freezer room. You can reduce up to 75 percent. Once I reduced until it was. Like thick caramel and then I froze. One little ice cube of that is good for four cups of water.
Great tip, thanks!
Time to buy an InstaPot! I keep coming across recipes for using it. How many quarts are you able to make out of one batch? Do you ever run the bones through a second time?
Hi Holly! I get about 2 quarts from one round and when I do beef bones yes I do 2 rounds. The chicken bones are pretty small so just one round on those. I hope that helps!
When you do the second round do you pull out only the bones and toss and replace the veggies?
Have you ever considered doing two rounds with just the bones and then putting in a stock pot and doing a larger pot but for a shorter time with the veggies and maybe a little more water? I love the idea of doing beef bone broth without smelling the house up for 48 hours but, even with a 8 qt Instant Pot you don’t get much broth so seems like you could just have about 8 hours of cooking the vegetables.
Hi Tim! I rarely replace the veggies on that second round, though if I have a lot of scraps in the freezer to get rid of I will. I have never tried doing the veggies separate!
The 8qt was just released from IP so if you are thinking of ordering one now is the time to jump on board! Mine just came this morning and I’ve already got a batch of bone broth going!
Great Kimberly!
Hi Kimberly,
You said you got your new 8 quart IP in April. I can’t find where that’s available, any chance you could tell me where you got yours.
Thanks
Dick
I saw your question & thought I’d answer you. You can get the 8 quart on Amazon, last I saw they were around $180. Right now they are out of stock, supposed to be back the end of May. Or you could get 2 6 quarts for a bit more, the DUO is around $114 & the LUX is usually $80. The LUX is only high pressure, no option for low pressure & does not have the yogurt function that the DUO has. I have the 6 quart DUO (7 in 1 model) & I love it!
I’m going to make the whole chicken in my IP and as suggested use those bones for the broth. Do you reuse the vegetables from the whole chicken recipe or add new fresh vegetables? I’m assuming that adding fresh vegetables will probably give the broth more flavor, but just wondering what you do since I’m new to bone broth. Also, you mentioned you can make the broth from deer bones. Have you ever done that? If so, how did you like the flavor? Was it gamey?
Hi Thalia! I do usually add some fresh veg to the pot for making the broth. Deer bone broth is not as gamey as you might think – and I am actually a little sensitive to gamey taste since I didn’t grow up on a lot of hunted meat. I have made it a few times in the past and have found I do like to mix the deer bones with something like a beef marrow bone or two or some chicken bones just to give it a little more depth of flavor. I tend to use more veggies as well. I don’t think it is overly gamey but it can be if you don’t use enough veggies. Does that help?
What do you use the bone broth for? Do you eat/drink it as is or add to recipe?
Hi Elizabeth! You can drink it from a mug with a little sea salt and you can add it to recipes as water or broth in a recipe or soups and stews as the broth.
After an hour in my pressure cooker the marrow was soft but still in the bone. Should I scoop it out and scrape the meat off the bones and cook a little longer? Will it be all right without the marrow? What can I do with the leftover bones?
Hi Georgia! Sure! You can use the marrow and then doing another “round” of broth with fresh water with the bones – marrow bones are so thick and large I very often do 2 rounds of broth on them.
Your broth is so gellateous that I am jealous (just kidding). But I used 2 roasted chicken remains, 2 raw feet, 1 raw neck and the veggies but no gel. Filled Instant Pot to fill line with water. Did the 30 minutes of acv as well. What can I do to get your lovely gelatin?
Hi Laurelrae! Sometimes my gel is more than other times, and there just isn’t a rhyme or reason to it I have found – you sound like you are doing everything great so you are getting all of the nutrients I assure you! This is the gel I get from beef bones – thick marrow bones give off this thick gel – I rarely get this sort of gel with chicken bones even if I do use the feet!
I use 2 pounds of feet plus 3 pounds of chicken backs. Makes great bone broth that is very gelatinous!
Hey! Why do the bones have to be cooked? Isn’t it more time consuming, inconvenient and expensive to have to cook the bones first with all the ingredients you have above then wash those dishes and then buy more broth ingredients to add to the cooked bones you will then put into the IP?? Why not just make the broth when you’re cooking the bones the first time around? You will save so much more money and time. Please tell me I miss read this!
I Lael! The flavor of beef broth will be richer and taste better when the bones are roasted. When I do a whole chicken in the IP I save the juices left behind (called meat stock – it is a little different in nutrient value than bone broth but still very good to use), and then I use the bones to make bone broth. Does that make sense?
Hello! If I were to buy beef bone marrow bones (they sell them frozen at whole foods) how long would you suggest I roast them before I put them in the instant pot? My instant pot will be here next weekend I can’t wait to try bone broth in the instant pot!
Hi Shayla! I would do about 400 degrees 30-45 minutes 🙂
Hi!how long do you roast them in the oven?
Hi Trish! about 45-50 minutes.
I’m excited to try this, I have a whole chicken in the deep freezer that I need to cook. Just to clarify, do you use the liquid leftover from cooking the whole chicken to make your broth? And then just add water until it’s filled enough?
Hi April! The leftover liquid after making your chicken is called meat stock – different than bone broth but it is still nourishing and you can save it for soups, stews, or cooking in – it’s like free broth! And then you can put the chicken carcass back in the pot with fresh water and make your bone broth. I hope that helps!
I am using the book Superfood for Babies to make broth for my 6 month old and I am wondering if you use this recipe for the broth you fed your babies since it contains ingredients other than just the bones, water and vinegar that the book says to use. When I made broth for myself during pregnancy I followed a recipe similar to yours here. Thanks!
Hi Samantha! I didn’t change my method or ingredients when feeding my babies their broth. You can make it how you feel most comfortable!
This look so simple, and oh my that gelatinous goodness! I just ordered my Instant Pot, can’t wait to try this out!
Should I not use the “meat stock” from my whole chicken for the bone broth? You said it’s nutrients are different…
Definitely save it Erna! It still has some gelatin to it and some minerals – just not as loaded as bone broth. It is tasty and works well for soups, gravies, stir frys etc! And it’s free! 🙂
Where did you find the “Broth is Beautiful”. Looked on Amazon and didn’t find it. Can you give us more info on it?
Hi Rebecca! It is this article from Weston A Price Foundation! http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/broth-is-beautiful/
I just used the meat broth (was just water and spices) from cooking the whole chicken and added additinal water and new aromatics. Is this ok or is there a reason NOT to do it? Thanks!
Hi Jess! Yes you can use that! It is called meat stock and has it’s own benefits as well – I tend to strain the meat stock off from cooking a chicken and use that just like broth in recipes – free broth 🙂
I found an interesting recipe that uses bone broth for making a desert. It is called “Lemon Calf’s Feet Jelly”. I gave it a try and it turned out good.
I am new to the Instant Pot, and new to bone broth, and I’m giving this a try! I have a ton of bones left from the 1/2 beef we purchased. When I took my bones out of the freezer and unwrapped them, I noticed that my beef bones are very meaty. Will the meat burn in the 45 minute roast? Are your bones meaty? How do you think I should proceed?
Hi Melanie! My bones are typically not meaty but I have purchased some with meat before. You could still roast them at that temp but pull the meat off after 20-30 minutes if you wish! Or you could slow cook in a crockpot for the day. I hope that helps!
Love this recipe! My husband will be deer hunting soon. Which part of the deer good for bone broth? Anything I should avoid…say just use the leg bones and pass on the neck? Looks like you add beef or chicken along with deer so I will keep that in mind as well. Using instant pot so assume I need to cut bones small enough to fit in 6 qt pot. Thanks for reply and wisdom experience.
Hi Linda! You can use whatever you have from the carcass in the broth – the neck does tend to be a bit bitter so I don’t use the chicken necks. You can cut the bones for sure – or if you would like to do a bit batch all together – when I do my big turkeys or if I have a bunch of bones to get through I use my big oven roaster to make gallons at a time. The cook time is longer but it ends up being less hands on time because it all gets done in one shot – you can look at this post where I describe how I do it ::
https://www.raisinggenerationnourished.com/2014/01/nourishing-chicken-bone-broth/
Use this method if your bones are raw/uncooked :: https://www.raisinggenerationnourished.com/2014/02/nourishing-beef-bone-broth/
I make bone broth for my pups too, and they love it. Today, I’ve had chicken bone broth in the crockpot for about 24 hours, and will probably leave it another 4-6. This morning, I used your recipe (minus the onions since they are toxic to dogs) to start an Instant Pot full of beef bones (with a couple of pork neck bones tossed in). Normally, these larger bones would take about 48 hours in the crockpot, but today, they will be finished in under 2. Doing the happy dance!! Thank you! Once cooled, I like to freeze the broth in ice cube trays so that I can pull out however much or little I need at any given time… or give them to the pups as summertime “pupscicle” treats.
I also use a strainer in my Instant Pot so that I can simply remove the strainer containing the bones and veggies when the broth is done. 🙂
For the pups, I strain out the vegetables and save them to use in my next batch of homemade dog food. For people, I sometimes leave the veggies in the broth and emulsify them to make a thicker, stronger veggie flavor to use in a variety of dishes. So many great options!! And, to all of the pup-lovers out there… please don’t feed the left-over cooked bones to your pups, as cooked bones can easily splinter and cause internal damage. <3
Thank you for the tips Rhonda!
Rhonda, what a wonderful idea to make “pupscicle treats” out of bone broth for the summer! I love to come up with great ideas to include our furry britches!
The idea of putting the “solids” in a strainer in the IP? Brilliant! I’m so glad I read this comment before making my bone broth!
I made this recipe, but my beef broth is really watery. What do you think went wrong. I even bought chicken feet and put two in. Help!
Hi Lynne! Did it gel up a bit after it was refrigerated? It will be thin when warm but will gel up when refrigerated. There are times I don’t get a gel on my bone broth and it doesn’t mean you did something wrong – there just might have been more water than collagen in the bones used. If you soaked your bones in the ACV before the heat you can be sure your bone broth has all the minerals and is very nourishing!
Hi 🙂
I’m new to instant pot and excited to make broth from my Christmas turkey carcass!! I normally do it on the stove top or slow cooker.
I’ve never done the vinegar before – I only have malt and white vinegars on hand. Can I use one of them or should I hold off until I buy some ACV?
Thanks!
Oh – I also have balsamic vinegar on hand!
Hi Jessica! White vinegar will work! You just need an acid medium to break down the bones to pull out the minerals! Even straight wine works or lemon juice!
Would you use vinegary kombucha as the vinegar to break down the bones?
I have never heard of doing this Ellen, but it makes sense that it would work!
I tried this today but think by beef bone broth didn’t work right. I took raw beef bones, roasted them for 45 min in the oven and put them in the IP with water, celery, onions, cider vinegar and did manual setting for 120 min, NPR. The broth looks very light (more like chicken than beef broth) and so far 2 hours later, no gel. Any ideas?
Hi Amy! As long as you soaked the bones with ACV before you cooked, your broth is fine! You might have had more water than you needed but I assure you, your broth has vitamins, minerals, as well as collagen! You can do another round of broth on those same bones and just use less water if you want a richer broth. There are times I don’t get as great of a gel and it can just be the water ratio or just that the bones might not have had as much collagen. The most collagen rich parts of an animal would be the chicken feet from chickens, and some of the marrow bones from beef bones.
Hi, new to pressure cooking and my mom got me a differnt brand called Instant Cooker. It doesnt let me set the time for 120 minutes. The highest I can do is 90. Will it make a differecne if I do it for 90 and a second round for 30?
Hi Jeannie! I think that would be fine!
Do you set the pressure on low or high when do the bones?
High pressure!
Thanks so much for this- super helpful!! Can you talk a bit about your process storing it? I’m always torn about how to cool and store it because it seems like no option is ideal and risk free. I primarily use my broth for drinking and I’ve been straining and funneling into quart sized mason jars then putting an ice cube (or frozen broth) in to help cool it. Then I’m not sure which type of lid to use. Would love to hear what you do and any precautions or tips you have about that aspect of homemade broth!
Hi Amy! Sure! I use the quart and half gallon BPA free freezer containers that Ball makes – our local grocer carries them or you can find them on Amazon. I just cool it on the counter and then put them right into the freezer. You can put them in the fridge overnight before you put them in the freezer if you wish. I hope that helps!
I ordered two 8 quart from Amazon 2 weeks ago. Delivery date of May 25th. They both arrived yesterday and were on sale for $129ish.
Does the pressure cooked bone broth have much less glutamates and histamine for those, like me, that are very sensitive to the longer cooked versions? I need to know if I can make a “safe” and beneficial bone broth from this Instapot so I can consider buying one. Thanks.
Hi Connie! That is a great question! Yes I have read in multiple sources that pressure cooking bone broth results in lower histamines than slow cooker or stock pot versions that cook for longer, 24 hour periods of time. I would definitely give it a try! I had histamine issues a few years back and didn’t have my IP then so I cannot vouch for it personally. While I struggled with histamines I drank meat stock exclusively and tolerated it well.
Just made my first batch of bone broth in my new IP! Kind of a stupid question…but because the chicken bones are so soft, should you strain through more than a strainer? like some sort of paper filter to filter out any small bones pieces that might break off? Would ingesting these even cause a problem? I would think it would…??? thanks.
Hi Nora! No stupid questions around here! That is a great question. I do strain mine through a very fine mesh strainer. Some people use a nut milk bag or thin kitchen towel.
Hi Renee,
I found this post via Pinterest, and I am very interested in trying to make my first bone broth using veggies from my garden and also using others’ tips on how to freeze it too. However, I just have a 6.5qt oval crock pot. Do you think I could do it using that? I realize it will take longer (not sure how long).
Hi Joanna! You bet you can! And I did my bone broth in the slow cooker for years – way longer than I have been doing it in the Instant Pot 🙂 Here is my instructions for using a slow cooker or oven roaster :: https://www.raisinggenerationnourished.com/2014/01/nourishing-chicken-bone-broth/
Hi,
Thank you for this post, how about the scum that form when broth start boiling? Is it important to skim it ? I’m very confused about that.
Hi Hannah! That is a great question! I have just been skimming the scum when I use the broth for soup and it comes to a simmer. You could bring the broth to a simmer after it cooks in the IP and skim it then if you want too.
This is my first time making bone broth in the IP.
Do I discard the meat from the bones,after the completion???!
Hi Eva! If you have meat on your bones, roast the bones off first and pull the meat off – you can use it for soups, stews, or stir frys – it is good meat so don’t waste it!
I tried this recipe last night and followed it to a T, but all of the marrow remained in the bones. There is broth and a layer of fat I skimmed off the top, but there is no gel. How do you get the bones to cook to the point that it creates gel in the broth? Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks very much.
Hi Alexandria! It could just be your bone to water ratio in the pot, or just that set of bones might not have been as gelatinous. The marrow doesn’t make the gelatin – the collagen in the bones does – or adding something full of collagen such as chicken feet will make it gel more. If you followed the instructions for soaking with the ACV in the beginning, rest assured, you have broth full of minerals and all the good stuff! Promise! Sometimes I don’t get a perfect gel either 🙂
Dear Renee, I’m new to Instant Pot and wanting to try bone broth. When making a lot of broth does it have to all be refrigerated or just in the pantry?
Hi Sharon! Bone broth needs to be refrigerated or frozen. You can pressure can it if you want to keep it in the pantry. I hope that helps!
Hi Renee! How clean should the bones be and do I use all the bones or just the large ones from a whole chicken that I had just cooked in my IP?
Hi Sharon! You can clean them off as much as you like – doesn’t have to be perfect 🙂 And I use the whole chicken carcass!
Did you refrigerate it? My broth didn’t gel for hours at room temp, but once it cooled in the fridge it turned to pure gel.
I have read before that marrow bones are not good to use because they are so high in fat. But it seems you’ve had good experience using them? Do you roast them first? If so, could I just scrape the marrow out at that point?
Hi Elise! Actually the type of fat in grass-fed marrow bones is extremely nourishing to brain health! I feed it to my babies and kids all the time! I roast the bones and the kids eat it right out of the bone with a pinch of sea salt 🙂 You can scrape it out if you don’t want to use it though.
Good to know! I think I was mainly told not to use them because they make the broth oily.
Hi! I’m new to the bone broth world. I’m trying to make a chicken weekly, I love the ways I can use the left overs. I’ve tried the bone broth twice. Both times it has not been gelatinous. The stock I save after cooking the chicken in the IP is very gelatinous. I follow the recipe to the t, minus the chicken feet. Am I doing anything wrong? Thanks!
Hi Jessica! As a general rule, the chicken bones aren’t themselves super gelatinous which is why many people add the feet to the pot. Rest assured you are getting some gelatin as well as all the nutrients from the bones as long as you have done the acid soak in the beginning!
HOW long is the broth good for? What about canning the extra
You can keep the broth in the fridge up to 7 days, or the freezer 6 months. You can can the extra – pressure canning is recommended versus water bath canning for meat products. The Prairie Homestead blog has a good tutorial for pressure canning bone broth!
Hi, do I have to cooked cooked chicken bones?
Hi Christina! No, if the bones have cooked with your whole chicken or a beef roast, etc, then you do not need to roast the bones before.
I cannot get any of my 4 batches to gel.please telm me why
I have followed all directions and am very frustrated
Hi Marion! Sometimes I don’t get a gel either! It can mean a couple things. The water to bone ratio might be off – there is still gelatin there but there is more water than gelatin so it just doesn’t “set.”. Rest assured, if you did the ACV soak before you turned the heat on, you have pulled everything from the bones and it is all in there! Also, there are certain parts of the animal that are have more collagen and will make the broth more gelatinous. This is why many people add chicken feet or marrow bones and knuckle bones to their bone broth – it is the highest collagen content.
I have some chicken feet from a farmer in my freezer with some chicken backs and stew hens. Would you roast it all before putting it in the Pot?
Hi Jen! I don’t cook my chicken feet – just toss them in!
How do you store this? How long does it keep in the refrigerator or freezer? Thank you! I made this tonight with leftover prime rib bones. It tastes magical!! 🙂
Oh yum! Lovely! This will be good in the fridge for 5 days – if you don’t plan to use it before that, put it in the freezer up to 3 months 🙂
I have an electric Cuisinart pressure cooker, not an IP brand. It only has high and low settings on it,not a soup setting. Would I use high or low on this recipe?
Hi Elieen! I am not sure! Are you in the Instant Pot Facebook group? There are people in that group that have different brands of IP and ask questions about settings – I would ask in there!
The post is old but I’m sure newbies like me read these long after. The 8-qt dropped to $109 on Amazon. I got mine as a deal of the day for $81!
Made my first batch and JUST jared it! I’m throwing the beef bones back in the IP for a little extra… how long is long enough for the “second cook”?
Go the full time again 🙂
I made my first batch of bone broth a couple days ago. I am using my IP again today and was setting the time when I realized that when the time says 1:20 that is actually 1 hour 20 minutes, which is 80 minutes, not 120 minutes. So I should have instead set the time to 2:00 hours to have it pressure cook for 120 minutes. Just clarifying that is correct and if so, it might help to clarify this in the recipe. Thanks!
Hi Jeanne! Yes, you want 120 minutes (2 hours) – I just push soup and pull the minutes down past 0 minutes and it goes right to 120!
I am anxious to try bone broth. What is the best way to store it after it is done? Thanks!
Hi Joan! You can keep it in a jar with a lid in the fridge up to 7 days. Or you can freeze it up to 6 months.
Do I have to roast the beef bones first in the oven, I ask because it heats up my whole apt and a pain to do, that’s the reason why I purchased the instant pot , so as not to use the oven.
The roasting gives the broth the depth of flavor you will want. You just can’t that from raw bones in the broth.
My insta pot has a saute setting so I put a touch of olive oil in the bottom and brown bones that way instead of the oven. It may not get quite as much flavor but it is good.
Hi there! Love your website! I just finished making the whole chicken in my IP and I’m about to start the broth. I have a couple questions. Once i remove the chicken do i put the bones, skin, cartelidge and all that back in for the bone broth or do i mostly want clean bones? The hardest part seems to be removing all the chicken to save and eat and then removing all the inedible parts from the bones for broth. If i start the bone broth in the IP for the 120 mins is it okay to leave it sitting under the pressure for another hour or more under the pressure ? I’m trying to start it at 4:30 but won’t be home until 8ish.
Hi Carra! Great questions! I don’t pick the bones completely clean at all! Yes just toss any of the carcass back in. And then yes, I have left the finished bone broth for a couple hours if I’m not home (or forget!) – it’s ok!
Have you ever reused the beef bones for a second (or third!) batch? Thanks!!
Hi Kerry! Yes, I typically do 2 “rounds” with big beef/marrow bones!
When you strain the vegetables do you toss them out . I also dont have gel. But I’ve been using beef bone I A soup pot for almost two days . I froze the bones. Since I cokeo
od them so long can I still them for another batch? Do you mix different bones?
.
Hi Penny! I strain the veggies out. Sometimes you will get a gel and others you may not. It does depend on the type of bones you use. If they have a lot of collagen, you will get a good gel. Bones like knuckle bones, marrow bones, and chicken feet are very collagen rich.
I hope the resulting broth turns out well for others. But even after following the directions to the letter (minus the chicken feet) it seemed like a great deal more work than taste. I had to throw in a couple of tablespoons of Better than Bouillon beef concentrate to make it palatable, which I’m guessing pretty much negated its health benefits.
Hi Mandy! This is a very basic broth recipe. There is no seasoning (like sea salt) which will make a very big difference in taste. The reason I leave the recipe salt/season free, is because it leaves the broth versatile for whatever dish you are using it in. If you want to drink it or use it for soups, you will need to season it to your taste. You can also add specific herbs to give the broth the flavor you want. I hope that helps.
How long can you refrigerate the bone broth?
Hi Maria! 1 week.
Hi Renee, I just picked up a fifty pound box of deer bones for $6 from local processor and I can’t wait to try your recipe. My question is many of the bones are really big. Will I get better results by sawing them into smaller pieces for better access to marrow, or would it be a waste of time? This is gonna be great. I hear venison broth is awesome. Regards, Tim
Hi Tim! That is going to taste amazing! I would roast the bones and see if you can break them up a bit after roasting them – I do think the more you can fit in there the richer the broth will taste.
Hi there. I have a question about roasting the bones. I’ve read people roast the bigger bones but just throw in the feet without roasting. Should I be roasting all of the bones? Also I did read you can reuse the marrow bones, do I roast those again or throw them in since they’re already been roasted. Thank you 🙂
Hi Roxy! Great questions! Roast the bones for best flavor – you can do the bone broth without roasting, but the flavor will be better with them roasted. You do not have to roast chicken feet. And yes, those big thick marrow bones, I do a couple “rounds” of broth making with those – you don’t have to roast them twice. Just roast, make your broth, strain, toss the bones back in with fresh water and do another round. Does that help?
Yes, that helps. Thank you so much. Also, Can I refreeze the marrow bones? or do I have to use them the dame day?
Am new to your website. Thank you for great recipes and information. Have you used pork bones to make bone broth?
Hi Celi! I have used ham hocks in my bone broth and it is delicious!
I did everything you said, and after 2 hrs in my instapot, it reduced to about a cup of broth? i could smell a rich chicken broth smell after like 10 minutes. can i just cook it for 30 minutes instead?
Hi Andrea! That is very odd, because I have never had that problem – I always get a full 3 1/2 quarts of broth if my IP is filled. Did you just have one set of chicken bones in there, so it was only filled up part of the way? 30 Minutes would be fine, though I think the flavor will be best with the longer time.
I just got my IP but I have been making bone broth for my animals, I remove all of the bones I can feel but then I run everything, little bits of meat, tiny bones, broth (fat if it’s there) through our vitamix blender and it is fine. They animal don’t mind their meat more as a sauce at all. Also I just learned garlic is not good for dogs, so no garlic or onions in anything your going to feed animals.
I made beef broth in my IP but it tastes like pure fat!! I put it in jars and will skim off the fat but there’s a LOT of fat! Is this normal? It tastes disgusting right now. I sure hope it’s edible. Making it for a friend who just got out of the hospital and is on a clear liquids diet.
Hi Donna! Let the broth cool and skim the fat. You can use the fat for cooking/frying in!
I use your recipe for bone broth and try to get end bones with collagen and I also add 2 scoops of beef gelatin collagen protein which gels well when cooled. Great stuff!
I never skim the fat, i drink it after melting the broth in the microwave. Course we have doing Keto for quite a while and love the fat.
We have a great Asian market with a meat counter and it’s a great source for bones and I can biy chicken feet by the package. I keep them in the freezer and use as needed.
Did you mean an entire head of garlic?
Not just a clove?
Hi Paul! I use a whole head of garlic for mine – you can use less if you want 🙂
How do you smash a whole garlic head? Not just a bud, right?
Smash the cloves of garlic 🙂
My attempt at making this bone broth was a complete fail when I opened up the lid it was bone dry. What do you think I did wrong? I thought I followed the recipe correctly. Thanks for your input.
Hi Virginia! I have truly never had this problem. Just be sure you are filling the pot with water to cover the bones, and be sure your lid is sealed properly is all I can think of.
I really enjoyed making this recipe without too many ingredients. Bone broth came out rich and extremely flavourful.
So glad you enjoyed it Mateo!
We have a great Asian market with a meat counter and it’s a great source for bones and I can biy chicken feet by the package. I keep them in the freezer and use as needed.
I followed the recipe – I used femur bones – and the broth was very, very bland. I used an 8 qt ip – not sure if maybe I used too much water.
Hi Martina! It could have been too much water – did you roast the bones before you did them in the IP? That helps with flavor. Were the bones cut up well?
Wow. Inspired. Can’t wait to make this!
Did you mean an entire head of garlic?
Yes! But you can use less!
Do you roast your bones first?
Hi Jessica! Yes, if the bones are raw you can roast them at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. If the bones are from an already roasted chicken or roasted beef roast, you don’t need to do this.
Thanks Renee, ever since we prepare meat and we don’t care about the bones as much but now after reading your blog, I definitely gonna try this.
Great! I hope you enjoy your broth!
This is my go to for bone broth, it always turns out great and is so easy! I love keeping my freezer stocked with it!
That’s great!
Is there a reason you would make chicken bone broth over beef bone broth? Is the nutrition better from one over the other?
Hi Sharon! I make and use both actually!
Hi Renee, I didn’t roast my bones first. Is this a problem or with the bone broth be fine?
Hi Gina! The broth will still be fine, but the flavor is a little deeper/richer when you roast the bones first.
I have two large beef femur bones filled with marrow. Should I use both of those? And, do they need to be cut up if they fit in my 8 qt IP? ( my Lab loves them but this time I’m using them! Ha ha )
Ha! Yes use those bones! Roast them up first for flavor and then if they fit in the IP you could do that – when I have very large beef bones I do them in my large crockpot 🙂
This is my go to for bone broth, it always turns out great and is so easy! I love keeping my freezer stocked with it!
Hi Hunsa! I’m so glad to hear that!
I just discovered beef bones (wrapped in butcher paper) at the bottom of our chest freezer from last year’s side of beef we buy from a local rancher. It’s near time for the delivery of our newest side of beef, so it’s been a full year. Are those bones too old?
No, I’d use them for sure!
Hello! I am brand new to this but recently bought 6lbs of beef bones from a local farm and am trying to read up on as much as I can before I get started with my broth! Is there a difference, as far as health benefits go, between using the stovetop method, pressure cooking, and slow cooking bone broth? I read somewhere that if you are looking to help heal your gut, instant pot isn’t the way to go (but is otherwise a perfectly acceptable method) but the article offered no explanation.
In another article, I read that using a slow cooker yields the least desirable outcome due to the heat not being high enough to extract the flavors and collagen from the bones effectively enough? Does anyone have any insight? Thank you!
Hi Deena! You’ll get the same health benefits from the Instant Pot/pressure cooking as stovetop and slow cooker. It just depends on what method you prefer. The pressure cooker does not ruin any of the health benefits!
Can you pursue can/bottle the bone broth for a longer shelf life?
You can can bone broth via pressure canning NOT in a water bath since it is animal based.
Hi! I can’t wait to try this and sorry if I missed this info somewhere… but approximately how many bones do you use for a batch of this bone broth?
Hi Bonnie! You’ll be able to get 1-2 chicken carcasses in the IP. If using beef bones, just fill as high as you can in the liner and fill in the rest with the veggies and water.
Hi Renee! Super quick broth recipe. Super simple. Great! But mine always comes out cloudy instead of Beautiful clear, amber, thoughts?
Hi Jasmine – it could just be the straining didn’t quite catch all of the sentiment, or maybe yours was more concentrated. Mine will be vary in color too!
How will leaving out the onion affect the taste and nutrients in the bone broth? Since you are straining out the pieces, do you have to leave out the onion if feeding it to your dog?
Any herbs you know of that can add flavor to the bone broth? I made it with turkey wings to make the gravy for thanksgiving one year and I included lots of fresh herbs.
Hi Lisa! The onion provides flavor and nutrients, but you can leave them out if you wish. I don’t have a dog, so I wasn’t aware they can’t have it? You can add herbs to your liking for sure! I tend to keep it neutral so that I can use the broth in multiple applications and add herbs to each recipe!
oh no I forgot to roast by bones! I just jumped to recipe and didn’t read the blog. please tell me my broth will still be edible and nutritious just not so flavorful? thank you for the recipe I’ll get it right next time!
It will be perfectly edible Austin!