Recipe: Homemade Vegetable Broth

February 1, 2012 by Laureen Fox | 12 Comments

I’m back. After twelve days in the hospital, the Doctors were unable to pin point the source of my abdominal pains. Does that sound like a familiar story to any of you? According to the blood-work, x-rays, ultrasound and HIDA scan, my organs are functioning as they should. The next step would have been to have exploratory surgery and that’s something I plan to avoid! So, home they sent me with instructions to see my family Doctor for Pain Management.

I’m happy in my kitchen at home, making my own meals. Hospital food is not the greatest for healing a grumpy gut. Therefore, I was really happy when Mr Fox brought in some of this Homemade Vegetable Broth from our freezer.

This gluten free vegetable broth was the first recipe I posted on my Fox in the Kitchen blog. A basic clean and clear homemade Gluten Free Vegetable Broth that is a staple in the Fox Kitchen. With this being the season in which we consume more soups, stews and casseroles, I thought it worth re-posting the recipe. It makes such a lovely base for so many winter dishes.

I usually make a double batch and freeze the broth in 1/2 cup and 1 cup portions. In order to save space in the freezer, I pop the frozen “broth cubes” out of the containers and seal them inside a sturdy zip-lock style bag for storage in the freezer.

[toggle title="Freezer Tip: Date and label everything. "]I keep masking tape and a sharpie handy so I can date and label contents before freezing.[/toggle]

With bags of “broth cubes” in my freezer, I always have gluten free Vegetable Broth on hand to thaw and use in my favourite soups, stews, casseroles, gravies or sauces. This broth is so tasty, I like to warm a cupful on its own, as a nice hot cup of clear soup.

Recipe: Homemade Vegetable Broth

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Summary: The ingredients list may seem long, but this homemade broth is a cinch to make. Healthier and better tasting than any store-bought variety, you have full control over all the ingredients, so making it gluten free is easy. Do you want sugar-free? Leave out the sugar. Prefer a meatier taste? Throw in some soup bones. Like it spicy? Add some hot sauce…you get the idea…

Ingredients

16 Cups water
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos, or gluten free soy sauce
2 Medium yellow onions, quartered (or 2 Tbsp Caramelised Onions, if available)
3 Medium carrots, scraped or peeled and cut in thick slices
2 stalks celery, cut in thick slices
2 leeks, white and light green parts, well-washed and sliced
6 cloves garlic, each cut in half (or 1 Tbsp Roasted Garlic, if available)
4 sprigs fresh parsley
2 sprigs fresh dill (if available)
2 Tbsp dehydrated mushrooms (I used a Porcini, Shiitake, Oster and Yellow Boletes blend from Costco)
3 bay leaves
1 tsp Herbamare (aromatic sea salt)
1 Tbsp Bragg Premium Nutritional Yeast Seasoning (not Brewers Yeast)
2 tsp brown sugar or sugar substitute (optional)
2 tsp whole black peppercorns
1/4 tsp basil
1/4 tsp rosemary
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp oregano

Instructions

Place the liquids and the vegetables in a large stock pot.
Add the fresh parsley, fresh dill, dehydrated mushrooms, bay leaves, Herbamare, Nutritional Yeast and sugar (if using).
Place the peppercorns, basil, rosemary, thyme and oregano in a mesh spice ball or tea ball (I use one like this one at Amazon) and add it to the stock pot. If you don’t have a mesh spice ball, just throw the loose spices into the pot. You can strain them out later.
Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hour.
Allow to cool.
Use a colander and jug or large bowl to separate the solids from the broth.
Discard/compost the solids.
Strain the liquid once more through a fine mesh sieve.
Cool and refrigerate the stock for up to 3 days or freeze in small individual containers for future use.
Defrost, stir or shake the broth before using, as it is prone to separating.

Quick notes

Roasting some of the vegetables before making the stock will give you a richer tasting stock. This time, when I made the broth, I added some Caramelised Onions and Roasted Garlic from my freezer. The stock turned out beautifully. It Was a little richer in both colour and flavour.

Variations

The next time I make Vegetable Broth, I plan to purée some cooked veggies with the broth as Kim Lutz from the gluten-free, allergen-free, vegan website, welcomingkitchen.com suggests in her An Easy Step to Healthier Eating Using a Soup Base contribution to the Balanced Platter. Have you checked out the Balanced Platter website yet? Launched on January 1, 2012, the site features contributions from some of my favourite food bloggers. The Balanced Platter website developed by Amy Green of Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free and Maggie Savage of SheLetThemEatCake.com is a great source for information about balanced, healthy living.

Recipe by Laureen.

Preparation time: 15 minute(s)

Cooking time: 1 hour(s)

Diet type: Vegan | Vegetarian

Diet tags: Gluten-Free | Dairy-Free | Sugar-Free | Egg-Free

Number of servings (yield): 16 Cups

This posting is linked to the following events:

Allergy Friendly Friday hosted by Cybele Pascal

Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays hosted by Amy at Simply Sugar and Gluten Free

Gluten Free Wednesdays hosted by Linda from Gluten-Free Homemaker

Allergy Free Wednesdays hosted by Amber at The Tasty Alternative

Fat Tuesday hosted by Jill at http:// Real Food Forager