SOUPS

Instant Pot Bone Broth

Rich broth from a leftover chicken carcass, with the jiggle that tells you it worked. One cup portions for the freezer, ready for soups all winter.

About 2 hr 30 min 8 servings Easy
Jump to Recipe
Instant Pot Bone Broth

The carcass is not garbage

A roast chicken gives you dinner, and then it gives you this. I used to toss the carcass without a thought. Now it feels like throwing out the best soup starter I own.

Everything else in the pot is odds and ends. Onion halves with the skin on, the last carrots, celery going soft. Broth is where the fridge cleanout pays off.

A spoon of vinegar and a long cook

Add a spoon of apple cider vinegar before you lock the lid. It helps pull the good stuff out of the bones while they cook. You will not taste it in the finished broth, I promise you that much.

Pressure cook for 90 minutes, then let the pot sit until the pressure drops on its own and the float valve falls. That slow drop is a natural release. Strain, chill, and lift the fat off. If the cold broth jiggles like jelly, you nailed it.

THE RECIPE

Instant Pot Bone Broth

Prep
15 min
Pressure
90 min
Release
Natural

Amounts are written for a 6-quart cooker. Total time includes estimated pressurization and release.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Put the carcass, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, bay leaves, and peppercorns in the pot. Add the water up to the max fill line and no higher. That line is there for a reason.
  2. Pour in the vinegar. Lock the lid and pressure cook for 90 minutes.
  3. Let the pressure drop on its own until the float valve falls. Strain the broth into a big bowl and throw the solids out.
  4. Chill the bowl until the fat sets in a layer on top. Lift the fat off and throw it out.
  5. Salt to taste. The broth underneath should jiggle like jelly when the bowl moves. That is how you know it worked.

PER SERVING

Nutrition breakdown

ESTIMATED

40 calories per serving.

Protein5 g · 54% of macro calories
Carbs2 g · 22% of macro calories
Fat1 g · 24% of macro calories
Fibre
0 g
Sugars
1 g
Sodium
240 mg
Saturated fat
0 g

Approximate values based on the listed ingredients and 8 servings. Brands and substitutions can change the totals.