Is there anything that warms the soul and heals the body better than hot broth when you are feeling under the weather? I love heating up a mug of it and sipping it while curled up in a blanket on the couch. It is also perfect for when you have an upset tummy, but still want to have some nutritious calories for your body! 

I made a turkey breast over the weekend and threw the carcass into the Instant Pot after supper with the leftover vegetables and scraps I had in the freezer. I always throw in whatever herbs and spices I feel like – you can really customize the taste of your bone broth depending on your taste and what type of bones you are using. 

Homemade bone broth is an easy way to incorporate nutrient dense, healthy, gut-healing food into your meals.

The Difference Between Bone Broth, Stock, and Broth 

Most people use the three terms broth, stock, and bone broth interchangeably, but they are in fact different by way of preparation. Broth is made from cooking meat scraps in water, and bone broth (commonly called stock) is made from the bones. Both broth and stock include herbs, spices, and vegetables for delicious taste and some quality nutrition. 

Why is Bone Broth Good for You? 

Turkey bone broth is great for strengthening joints, supporting healthy skin, healing your gut (bone broth is suggested to help heal leaky gut syndrome – check out the “GAPS” eating plan for details on that), and fighting inflammation. It gives a boost to your immune system and provides a good dose of calcium, magnesium, and potassium, plus other amino acids.  Whenever possible, use organic (and local!) ingredients for maximum health benefits.

How to Make Turkey Bone Broth in an Instant Pot 

There are a few ways to make a delicious bone broth at home, and the Instant Pot is the quickest and easiest. You can easily use a slow cooker or just a stock pot on your stove top. I love using my Instant Pot because it cooks everything down in a relatively short time, the insert is easy to clean, and I can fit a good number of bones in it.  the convenience is wonderful!

Place your turkey bones (fresh or frozen) into the insert, add in any vegetable scraps or pieces you would like (onions, celery, carrots, or whatever else you have that needs to get used), and cover with water. Add in about a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar – an acid is needed to draw all the good “stuff” out of the bones. Season with herbs and spices to taste (I always use sea salt or Himalayan salt, garlic powder or fresh garlic cloves, black pepper, thyme, oregano, and parsley). Switch up your add-ins to your liking – I added turmeric to the batch I made over the weekend, and it smelled amazing!  

I set my Instant Pot to seal, program high pressure for 120 minutes, then set the Keep Warm function for it to heat the rest of the day or overnight. let the pressure release naturally, carefully remove the lid, and let the contents cool. You can also run the function more than once, use the slow cooker option, or just run one pressure round without letting it sit. I love getting as much of the flavor and vitamins and minerals into the liquid as possible, so I like to let it run long. Often I will pressure cook everything, let it warm overnight, turn on the slow cooker function in the morning, then have it shut off before I get home from work so it can cool by the time I am ready to strain and store it. You can easily make the process fit to your schedule.

How to Store Homemade Turkey Bone Broth 

Once the liquid has cooled, use a strainer to pour your contents through and clear out the bones and vegetable chunks. Bone broth can be stored in your preferred storage containers, canning jars, or zip close freezer bags. I typically use empty canning jars or whatever storage containers I have available.  

• Glass Storage Tips: It is very important to leave room for the broth to expand when frozen when using any type of glass container for storage. Do not fill it to the top. You should also be sure the container is completely cooled before putting it into the freezer as extreme temperature changes can cause the glass to crack. 
• Plastic Storage Tips: I highly suggest letting your broth completely cool before pouring into any type of plastic container or storage bag to avoid melting plastic or any chemicals or particles leeching into your broth. You should also leave room for expansion when using plastic storage options. Plastic storage bags can be a space saver if you are low on freezer space: lay them flat in the freezer, then stack when frozen. 

Bone broth can be refrigerated for a week or two and refrigerated for months (the FDA states up to three months, but I have kept it frozen longer than that with no issues). I like to have a good stock of broth in my freezer going into fall to use for soups or whenever someone is sick in our house. It is beneficial to consume bone broth year-round, so be creative with your cooking throughout the summer as well!