Instant Pot Bone Broth

Bone broth is in!

The thing is, I grew up with bone broth, before bone broth becomes a gut-friendly super food. To me, bone broth is a traditional food, an integral part of my diet, a soup my mom would make to serve with a plate of steamed fish and stir fried greens.

Finally, after having these soups in my entire life, I’m learning that bone broth is good for your joints, your skin, your gut, your immune health and just about everything else. Some ancient mama wisdom there!

Now I make bone broth in an Instant Pot, with or without Chinese herbs, as a soup base for noodles or broth for cooking. It is easier to make than you think!

Start with collecting vegetable scraps or using a standard assortment of veggies such as carrots, celery, mushroom stems, ginger, garlic, onion and scallions.

Put vegetables in an Instant Pot with roughly 2 pounds of bones. I used beef bones here but you may use chicken, pork, turkey or fish.

Add a dash of apple cider vinegar, salt and enough water to cover the veggies and bones. Seal the pot and cook at high pressure for 120 minutes. Allow pressure to release naturally. Let the broth cool before straining into jars for storage.

Refrigerate overnight. Scoop off the excess fat that settles on the top and discard the next day.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 pounds bones from beef, pork, chicken or turkey

• 2 medium carrots, scrubbed and cut in half

• 3 celery ribs (or ends and leaves)

• 1 large yellow onion, quartered

• 6 cloves of garlic, lightly smashed

• Herbs and aromatics on hand (sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley, scallion, ginger, peppercorns)

• Other vegetable scraps such as mushroom stems

• 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• Water

• Sea salt to taste

METHOD:

1. Place bones, all vegetables, herbs, aromatics, vinegar into Instant Pot.

2. Add enough water to just cover the bones and vegetables in the pot.

3. Place lid on Instant Pot and lock into place.

4. Flip vent valve to ‘Sealing’.

5. Select ‘Manual’ setting and adjust time to 120 minutes (keep hitting minus till it reaches zero, hit minus again and it will automatically land on 120 minutes).

6. When cooking is done, allow pressure to release naturally (this might take 20-30 minutes).

7. Allow broth to cool before straining into jars for storage.

8. Refrigerate overnight.

9. Scoop off excess fat and discard the next day. (The fat from the bones will settle on top.)

Instant Pot Lentil Soup

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups dry brown or green lentils
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 8 cups vegetable broth (or combination of water and broth)
• Vinegar, salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

1. Switch Instant Pot to Sauté Mode. When the pot is warm, add olive oil, sauté onion for a few minutes. Add garlic and sauté for another minute.
2. Add carrots and celery. Cook for a few minutes.
3. Put in oregano, basil and bay leaves. Stir and mix well.
4. Put in lentils and tomatoes.
5. Add broth or a combination of broth and water. Stir and mix.
6. Close the lid. Switch Instant Pot to Manual Mode. Put it on for 12 minutes at high pressure.
7. When 12 minutes is up, use the quick release method to de- pressurize immediately.
8. Open the lid. Add vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. Throw in spinach or favorite greens to serve.

BUY AN INSTANT POT HERE.

Instant Pot Chicken Soup

I broke out my long down jacket today, so winter is officially on for me!

The colder weather means less salads, more cooked vegetables and hot soups. I usually make a variety of meat-based and vegetable soups because having a diverse diet is the cornerstone of my eating approach. Many soups also happen to be one-pot meals that freeze really well, so if you have a big pot of something, freeze them in meal size portions and rotate them throughout the looooong winter months!

Here is an Instant Pot chicken soup recipe inspired by SimplyRecipes.com that requires throwing all ingredients in an Instant Pot, pressing 1 button and walking away for an hour. 

I freeze the cooked soup in 4 meal size portions.

What I love about this picture is I have 4 home-made frozen meals all ready to go on busy nights. (The bottom container is actually an Instant Pot Coconut Chickpea Curry).

Ingredients:

• 1 3-4 pound chicken
• 4 celery stalks
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 medium parsnip, peeled and sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
• 12 sprigs fresh flat leaf parsley
• 3 large sprigs fresh thyme
• 2-3 teaspoons salt 
• 8 cups water

Method:

1. Put the chicken in the Instant Pot, breast side up.
2. Layer all ingredients on top, pour in water. 
3. Close the lid of the Instant Pot and make sure the pressure regulator is in "sealing" position. Select the “Manual” program, set the time to 25 minutes at high pressure.
4. When done, let the pressure release naturally. (The total time it takes for the pressure cooker to come up to pressure, cook and depressurize is a little over an hour).

Read this article from Jen Reviews about Pressure Cooker vs Slow Cooker

Buy an Instant Pot here

Clean-out-the-fridge lentil soup

I cooked a big pot of green lentils, made a delicious salad out of it but was kind of bored eating it as a salad again the next day. So I thought soup and found a perfect clean-out-your-fridge type recipe from Kitchn!  I simplified the recipe and improvised based on the veggie scraps I had in the fridge at the time. You really can't go wrong with it!

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2-inch to 1-inch piece fresh ginger, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups cooked green lentils*
• Chopped vegetables (cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, leafy greens, etc.)
• 4 to 6 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
• 1 (28oz.) can crushed tomatoes

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, heat olive oil and saute onion for a few minutes. Add garlic, cumin, turmeric, salt and pepper. Stir to coat.
2. Add ginger, pepper flakes, bay leaves, lentils.
3. Add hard or medium vegetables like carrots, celery, cauliflower, broccoli florets or squash. Pour in crushed tomatoes and stock. Depending on the amount of cooked lentils and veggies you have on hand, adjust the amount of liquid so it's enough to cover the lentils and veggies. Raise the heat to bring to a boil, then lower to medium-low heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
4. Add leafy greens if desired. If soup needs more liquid, stir in more stock. (It should look like thick soup, but not like a chili.) Add a splash of vinegar, salt, pepper and any additional seasoing to taste. Discard bay leaves. Garnish with parsley or cilantro and serve.

If you do not have cooked lentils, simply use more stock and cook the dried green lentils for an extra 15-20 minutes, until they are cooked through but not falling apart. Learn how to make a big pot of green lentils here.