Baby Yoda's Bone Broth

First of all if you haven't watched the Mandalorian you need to now! it is freaking amazing!! Now one of my favourite scenes in the first season is when baby yoda (Grogu) is sassily sipping his bone broth while mando is fighting. He is just so freaking cute and I thought to myself.... I want to drink that soup it must be nourishing and warm and delicious and its winter so go on and make it! and may the force be with you!!

This is a great recipe to make your own stocks for soups, risotto, curry, or any recipe where you would need stock, and you know exactly what is in it! I like to drink this first thing in the morning after I exercise or around 3pm when I need a snack. And I love making my own stock and freezing it for when I'm sick and need something healthy and nutritious.

Ingredients

- 2 Kg organic Beef/Grinjer (a Grinjer is a beast from the TV show the Mandalorian.... use beef XD) I have different cuts of long bones.

- 1 large bay leaf or 2 smaller ones

- 2 large/ 3 small cloves of garlic

- 4-5cm chunk of Fresh ginger

- 2 medium brown onions

- 2 medium/large carrots

- 10-15 dried peppercorns (additional pepper for seasoning)

- 3 medium/large stalks of celery + the inner light leaves of the celery (these leaves give a slight sweetness to the soup stock)

- Approx 4 Tbsp Apple cider vinegar (this helps to demineralise or break down the bone to release all of its nutrients). Half is used to boil the bones, half for the slowcooker

- Olive oil for baking the bones

Equipment

- 1 Large Stockpot

- Large baking tray and baking paper

- Oven

- CrockPot/slow cooker

- Fine sieve/cheesecloth

- Chopping board

- Chopping Knife

- Large bowl

- Sterilised jars for storage

First, we are going to take our beef (Grinjer) bones and place them in a baking dish and lightly coat them in oil, I'm using olive oil but you can use any. Then we are going to bake them until they are dark and brown for about 20 minutes at 200 degrees Celcius (400 degrees Fahrenheit). Then turn the bones over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until browned. This is a vital part of the recipe as browning our bones gives it a lovely rich sweetness! Of course, you can miss this step but it won't be as hearty as it should be.

Whilst the bones bake we are going to chop up the vegetables roughly. I make sure to peel my onion and wash the carrots and celery thoroughly to remove any dirt. I'm not removing the skin of the carrots as it adds extra flavour. Then roughly chop them up (don't worry too much about the size they are to add flavour, not to be eaten). Chop the ginger into small chunks and peel and roughly crush the garlic cloves.

Then to the slow cooker add the onion, carrot, celery, ginger, garlic, bay leaves, pepper and 1-2 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar.

Now in a large stockpot bring, cover the bones with water and 2 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar and bring it to a boil. Then whilst it is bubbling away scrape the scum or bubbles off the top of it and throw this away. Bring the heat down to medium-low heat so that it still bubbles and let this cook for about 20-40 minutes until you remove all the scum from the bones. Then remove from the heat. You can help remove extra scum by using an ice-cold metal spoon to remove the fat as the fat congeals onto the cold spoon, making it easier to remove.

If you wish to skip this step and cook straight in the slow cooker then add the bones to the vegetables and cook on low for about 16-30 hours and ensure you remove all the scum.

Remove the bones and place them into the large crockpot* with the vegetables in it. then with some of the cooking water from the bones fill it to the top, covering the bones. If you did not remove all the scum from your pot water, you can also add fresh water at this step, or skim the top of it before further cooking.

I typically cook my stock for about 22-24 hours (the first half on a high setting then turn it onto the low setting for the remainder). Of course, you can cook it longer or shorter depending on how much flavour you want. You can also cook this on a high heat the whole time

*Alternatively you can do this on the stove for the same amount of time. I use a crockpot because I typically leave this overnight and feel safer having a crockpot on than a live flame on the stove.

Once your broth is cooked take out the large chunks of bone and place them into a bowl. Then with a very fine strainer or cheesecloth strain your broth into a large bowl or sterilised jar.

Now to store this broth ensure you keep the layer of fat on top of the broth, this helps to keep it fresh and last longer in the fridge. You can also freeze this for about 2 months and take it out when needed.

To serve this, season it with salt and pepper to your liking and you can drink this on its own (Baby Yoda style), add it as a stock for soups such as ramen or anything you would typically use the stock for.

I hope that you try this, making your own stock from scratch is just delicious and so good for you, plus you know exactly what is going into it!