Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth is very easy to make and so good for you. your leftover chicken or turkey bones have found a home. Having an instant pot has changed the way I cook, (with the exception of my Joule Sous Vide) more than almost any cooking gadget I have ever owned. The ease and speed of this new-fangled apparatus has made cooking faster and sometimes almost effortless. Deciding to make a long cooking stew or roast and even broth now doesn’t involve an all-day process. And I might dare to say the pressure seems to draw out even more flavor than slow cooking. Hence Bone broth is not only very doable but is fantastic in the Instant Pot.
Can you believe that Thanksgiving is almost here? This has been an incredibly difficult year for almost everyone, and time seems to have a different meaning. While it is definitely advisable not to have big gatherings this holiday, most of us will cook a turkey or roast a chicken to make this holiday feel normal. There will be the inevitable remnants that many will just throw away. Bone broth is an excellent way to use the carcass with the idea that most of us will be at home and will welcome the idea of making more homemade ingredients for the diminished feast. I decided to play around with my Instant Pot to make some bone broth with the remnants of a chicken I had roasted and placed in the freezer for colder weather. I will have plenty of nutritious bone broth for anything I make for myself for my favorite holiday. And I can make soups and other dishes for days when I will inevitably get tired of my Thanksgiving leftovers.
Bone broth is full of great ingredients from all the vegetables and the extraction of nutrients and flavor from the bones. Usually, this takes many hours. With the Instant Pot, the cooking time is drastically reduced. Yes, the time is still about 3 hours or so. But compared to 12-14 hours, cooking bone broth the conventional way, using an Instant pot is a no-brainer.
Making Bone broth in an Instant Pot could not be any easier. It truly is a dump and go kind of recipe. There is no need to peel or prepare really any of the ingredients. The only thing you may have to do is to break apart the carcass to fit into the Instant Pot. Just make everything else fit into the pot, close the lid, and you are off to wonderful Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth. When the bone broth is finished, the broth can be stored for a week or so in the fridge, or you can do what I do and freeze it where it will keep for up to a year. One of the secrets I have learned is to freeze the broth in large ice cube trays. Then I store the frozen cubes in a plastic freezer bag. That way, you can use the broth in whatever quantity you need without defrosting and wasting any. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, now is a fantastic time to get one. Amazon seems to have them on sale quite frequently, and worth picking one up for all the home cooking we will all be doing in the coming months. I have a link here if you want to purchase one. I get a tiny commission at no cost to you if you want to help fund my blog, and every bit is appreciated. As always, please stay safe and think of others in your choices of where and with whom you gather. Have a great week.
- 1 chicken or turkey carcass picked over but not clean.
- 3 celery stalks not trimmed
- 3 carrots
- 1 large onion
- 3 garlic cloves smashed but not peeled
- 1 sprig fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried
- 1 sprig rosemary or ½ teaspoon dried
- 2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
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Depending on the size and shape of your poultry carcass cut or pull it apart to fit into the Instant Pot.
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Break up or chop to the remaining vegetables into large pieces to distribute around the carcass. You do not need to trim the tops of the celery or peel the carrots and onion just cut them up.
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Distribute the chopped vegetables along with the thyme, Rosemary, peppercorns and bay leaves around and on top of the carcass.
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Sprinkle the salt and the vinegar over the top of the vegetables.
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Put the lid on the Instant Pot and make sure that the vent is set to seal.
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Start the cooking process and set the cook time for 2 hours. (the Instant Pot will take about 30 minutes to come up to pressure, so add this into the time it takes to cook)
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When the instant pot has finished cooking let the Instant Pot release the pressure naturally for 30 minutes.
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After the Instant Pot has sat for 30 minutes to release the pressure, carefully turn the steam release vent to the venting position. You can use a wooden spoon or anything long to do this if you are unsure.
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Place a strainer over pot or another container. Using a slotted spoon or even tongs, remove as much of the solids as possible and discard. Pour the cooked broth and any remaining solids into the strainer and let the broth drain through (for a clearer broth you can line the strainer with several layers of cheese cloth. If you have a fine mesh strainer it is great to use, too.)
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Allow the broth to cool completely.
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Store in containers in the fridge for up to a week. You can freeze this broth for up to a year.
Note: a great way to freeze this broth is in ice cube trays and then stored in a freezer plastic bag, that way the broth can be used in any amount you need.
You can also freeze the remnants of a roast chicken or leftover turkey carcass and make this broth when you want at a later date.
