Use Your Instant Pot to Make Gut Healthy Bone Broth
Gut healthy and packed with natural collagen and other vital nutrients, making your own bone broth at home in the Instant Pot is easy! This instant pot bone broth recipe can be used in a variety of ways to make many staple meals much healthier.
Benefits of Bone Broth
We refer to bone broth as liquid gold in this household, because it really is! Made by simmering animal bones (could be chicken bones, beef bones, pork bones…sometimes even fish!) and connective tissue in water over a long period of time. It is packed with tons of vital nutrients, including amino acids, collagen, and other joint supporting compounds. It provides health benefits by supporting your immune system, gut microbiome, skin, and overall joint health. It’s also packed full of protein!
And the best part? It is very simple and easy to make. It can be used in many different recipes to add some extra nutrition. I use it often to cook pasta or rice, and use it for a base in many of my soup recipes.
It’s also great for pets! We have a 7 year old Golden Retriever, and he loves getting frozen bone broth treats as a great way to help support his aging joints, too.
Have I convinced you to make it yet? I hope so! Let’s get started.
What You’ll Need
I use my electric pressure cooker to make bone broth. It is a great way to make the process much easier and more hands off, which is a win win for me in the kitchen. You can also make it on the stove top or in a slow cooker, but using the instant pot makes delicious homemade broth in a fraction of the time.
Here’s the basics of what you’ll need:
- Bones: You can choose to use chicken bones or beef bones for your broth, or a combination of both! I have used bones from rotisserie chicken, although I prefer to use bones from organic whole chicken. Whenever I roast a chicken in the oven, I will save the bones by tossing them in a freezer bag to store for later use.
- Water: Filtered water is best.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: I use a small amount of apple cider vinegar in my bone broth to help extract more nutrients from the bones.
- Vegetable scraps: Think carrot tops, onion peels, celery leaves…those scraps that we may not be using otherwise. They also do great stored in the freezer until you’re ready to make a big pot of broth. Fresh herbs are also nice add ins if you have them on hand.
- Seasonings: I always add salt and pepper. Season to your heart’s content!
Note: No need to thaw the bones or vegetables if pulling from the freezer. They can be added straight in the Instant Pot no problem!
Optional: Sauté Veggies
If you prefer, you could sauté your vegetables on the stovetop or in your Instant Pot prior to making the broth. Toss the vegetables with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and preferred seasonings, and sauté for 5-10 minutes until lightly browned. This would give the bone broth a deeper flavor, but is completely optional! If sauteing in the Instant Pot, simply set the Instant Pot to SAUTE and allow it a couple minutes to heat up. Add in a couple tablespoons of olive oil, and then toss the vegetables in, seasoning to your liking. Sauté until lightly browned, and then add in the bones, water, and apple cider vinegar, as well as any other additional seasonings.
How to Make Instant Pot Bone Broth
If you are choosing not to sauté the vegetables, go ahead and throw all the ingredients into the Instant Pot at the same time, and then cover with water. You will place the bones, vegetables, and herbs (if using) in the instant pot. Fill the pot with filtered water until it is about 1 inch below the max fill line. For me, this is usually around 10 cups! Add in 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. The apple cider vinegar is key because the acidity helps pull nutrients out of the bones. It also helps to break down the collagen, therefore making it more abundant in the broth. I also season my broth with salt and pepper, but this is optional.
Lock the lid onto your Instant Pot and set the steam release knob to the “sealing” position. Select “manual” HIGH PRESSURE for 3 hours (180 minutes). It takes approximately 20 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to full pressure, at which point the timer will start to countdown. Once the 3 hours is up, allow to the instant pot to do a natural release, which will take around 20 minutes. Use a cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer to strain the broth (I use this reusable cheesecloth), and then add to mason jars.
Transfer to the refrigerator and allow the broth to cool fully. Once it has completely cooled, there will be a layer of fat at the top. If you prefer, you can use a spoon to skim the top layer of fat off of the broth, leaving behind a healthy broth, minus the fat. This step is optional!
There you have it! Delicious, healthy bone broth.
FAQs and Storage
Homemade bone broth will store well in airtight container in the fridge for around 4-5 days. I will usually place all of my bone broth into large quart size mason jars and place it all into the fridge initially to use. If I find that within a couple days we aren’t going to use up all of the broth, I will transfer it to freezer bags to store for use at a later time. You can also use ice cube trays or souper cubes. Souper cubes are something I have just recently started using, but boy are they great! I would definitely recommend looking into them. They make freezing soups and broth much easier. If using freezer bags, I prefer to store them laying flat in the freezer, saving space and allowing them to thaw much faster.
In short, yes. There are many different brands of bone broth available at the grocery store. The problem is that many brands do not simmer the broth long enough to get all of those essential nutrients out of the bones. To get the best bone broth, I recommend making it yourself. With the help from the Instant Pot, it really is very easy to make a quality bone broth right at home.
Drink it warm from a mug!
Use bone broth in place of water when cooking vegetables, pasta, and rice! Healthy and adds delicious flavor.
Use it as a broth base for soup recipes and chilis.
Freeze in ice cube trays for a nice, cool treat for your furry friend. Our dog loves it!
Shop for Recommended Tools
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, meaning I make a small commission off of them with no extra cost to you. Read my full disclosure policy here.
- Instant Pot
- Quart Size Mason Jars
- Cheesecloth
- Souper Cubes– make freezing soups and broth SO easy and convenient!
- Silicone Dog Treat Molds
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Instant Pot Bone Broth
Gut healthy and packed with natural collagen and other vital nutrients, making your own bone broth at home in the Instant Pot is easy! This instant pot bone broth recipe can be used in a variety of ways to make many staple meals much healthier.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs of bones (you can use chicken, beef, or a combination of both!)
- Vegetables or vegetable scraps (carrots, onions, celery, and garlic all work well)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 10 cups filtered water (Or enough water to come approximately 1 inch below max fill line)
Instructions
1. Place bones, vegetables, and herbs (if using) in the instant pot. Fill the pot with filtered water until it is about 1 inch below the max fill line. For me, this is usually around 10 cups! Add in 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Season with salt and pepper if using.
2. Lock the lid onto your Instant Pot and set the steam release knob to the “sealing” position. Select “manual” HIGH PRESSURE for 3 hours (180 minutes). It takes approximately 20 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to full pressure, at which point the timer will start to countdown.
3. Once the 3 hours is up, allow to the instant pot to do a natural release, which will take around 20 minutes. Use a cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer to strain the broth, and then add to mason jars.
4. Transfer to the refrigerator and allow the broth to cool fully. Once it has completely cooled, there will be a layer of fat at the top. If you prefer, you can use a spoon to skim the top layer of fat off of the broth, leaving behind a healthy broth, minus the fat. This step is optional!
5. Store your bone broth. Bone broth will store well in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. You can also freeze batches of it for up to 6 months. It reheats very well!
Notes
If you prefer, you could sauté your vegetables on the stovetop or in your Instant Pot prior to making the broth. Toss the vegetables with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and preferred seasonings, and sauté for 5-10 minutes until lightly browned. This would give the bone broth a deeper flavor, but is completely optional!
