Bone Broth's Allure

The world as I see it. ... Well-positioned companies, individuals. ... determining our fate. But our health is both our fate and primary responsibility. Bone broth, anyone? A new fad or a twist on a 'vintage' name has entered the food chain emporium. Bone broth is its name, a healthy alternative to other forms of health strategies we have come to know and love. 

In my childhood, bone broth was simply homemade broth, nothing special, nothing grand, made by mom. Today it is touted as the elixir of life, sometimes requiring up to 24-48 hours of cooking time, using a slow cooker, to gently simmer. Really? It doesn't take days to cook. Momsey should know. She makes bone broth often. And yes, bone broth is a magical potion but making it is no mystery. It requires time and effort.

We should consume this 'special' broth daily for its incredible health benefits. ... It is still called soup whatever the disguise! (“A rose by any other name is still a rose”.) ... Homemade soup is soup made at home, whether it is chicken soup, clear broth, beef barley soup or today's bone broth. Once upon a time, soup bones were no big deal. ... No one gave them a second thought. ... They were the least thought of ingredients derived from meat, given away or sold very cheaply in the meat dept. of the grocery store. (Raw beef bones were given to our retrievers to chew on, with appropriate supervision. The thick walled bones were the 'prime real estate', choice cuts of all the bones and our dogs loved them. These chewables helped remove plaque from their teeth and keep gums healthy). 

No one back then talked about bones the way they are talked about today.  Once upon a time, moms would turn tough cuts of meat and soup bones into delicious homemade soup that would last all week. (Grocery shopping, then, was not the high-wire act it is today.) ... Soup was the main act of any meal, never a supporting cast member on the dinner menu. ...  It was not an appetizer. Soup was supper, not the prelude to supper. Funny how things change. Assign a new name to something that has been around for decades and suddenly, under this new 'given' name, a pedigree is established, a new star is born. This new product is now elevated to a previous unheard of health status and can now be placed in an untapped category for the taste buds of the  gullible buying public. A new potent food is born. Naturally, up goes the price, as high as the market will bear. We are that trusting, 'no questions asked' market, with a wallet attached.

Momsey would love to simply open up a can of soup: mushroom, chicken, pea or tomato, add water, then heat, without wondering if it is wise to do so. The advent of super additives, preservatives and a host of other flavour enhancers make guinea pigs of us all. We must scour labels to discover the dietary mysteries lurking inside the tin or package. Oh My! We are becoming novice food inspectors. Since the 70's, processed foods have become a mainstay in our lives. Commercially made soups are laden with salt, sugars, corn starchy things and other words I cannot pronounce. Why cook, if, once in a while, we can cheat and have it made for us. But then we wonder. Is it healthy, albeit, quick to eat? Sometimes our bodies become inflamed by a highly processed diet of over-cooked, salty, sweet, refined foods - if we do not cook. Bone broth or homemade soup can help in the healing of our bodies while redirecting our attention to the place, in the home, where health magic begins: the kitchen. ...

Time is the critical factor when slow cooking tough cuts of beef, learning a new skill or trade, or painting a room. It is no different when cooking that centuries-old favourite called soup. There is no substitution for real food made by time honoured traditions. A modern name given a 'heritage' product, brings about renewed interest, perhaps, but usually with a 'whatever the market will bear' price attached. So only a few stand to benefit. Let's stop the madness and realize, like Dorothy did, in “The Wizard of Oz”, that we possess the power, we seem to give to others, for our own health and wellbeing. We can do it. It requires effort, not talent. The internet is alive with ideas, recipes and everything in between for us to be healthy, wealthy and wise.

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Here is The Momsey's so-called 'bone broth' recipe known by a simpler, more recognizable name called homemade chicken soup, among the many soups, I adore. My soups are always works-in-progress. When I hear or read of something new, about an herb or spice, I put it in my soups. If the taste is odd, I eliminate or reduce the amount I use in my bone broths. Turmeric is #1 in my hit parade of spices. I sneak it in everything. It is commonly referred to as a super food, great for keeping plaque at bay in the brain. (The more turmeric added, the deeper the colour. For rice, I add small amount to make rice yellow, not orange. Yum, yum anyway it is done.)

TheMomsey's Chicken Soup:

In stock pot, brown chicken, all bones and marrow, too, on low-medium heat with onions, quartered with clove of garlic, cut in half. Salt and pepper. (I add diced celery and carrots later.) Bay leaves, dry rosemary leaves, a new addition, and dill stalk can be added here along with turmeric sprinkled on chicken. If I have parsnips, I add them too cut into chunks. (They provide a  delicious mellow chicken soupy flavour to the broth.) Add cold water to cover. Simmer on low heat for a couple hours. Using uncooked meat/bones creates stronger flavour in bone broth, I believe. (More fat and flavour in legs, necks and wings, too.) Strain contents from stock. (I line strainer with cheesecloth to remove all solid food particles from soup, leaving clear broth.) Then I begin the process of adding vegetables back into my homemade 'clear' soup. (Leave stock 'chunks' in lined strainer, in bowl, to drain further in a bowl.) Twist the cheesecloth containing solid material to squeeze out remaining liquid. Add liquid to pot. Remove chunks of meat from strainer and add to soup. Taste. Add salt,  teaspoon of apple cider vinegar? then another layer of onions, diced this time, then carrots, celery and bay leaves. Stir. (Cook rice or fine egg noodles separately. Under cook a bit as these add-ins will cook further when added into bowl of hot soup. Add a scoop of rice or noodles into bowl then add hot soup.) Add more dill in soup, if desired, and let contents simmer for 1 hour or so on lowest heat. ... Cool. Freeze some. Refrigerate remainder. ... Scientists have referred to chicken soup as having a profound medicinal effect on health. It is a 'filling, yummy medicine', too, I might add, the cheapest prescription, not found, in the medicine cabinet..

Coming soon: Genetically Modified Us?