Nourishing Slow Cooker Chicken Bone Broth: An Effortless Homemade Recipe
Discover the incredible ease and rich, savory flavor of homemade chicken bone broth prepared in your slow cooker. This recipe takes just 5 minutes of active preparation, allowing you to set it and forget it, even overnight, for a deeply nourishing base for countless dishes. Say goodbye to store-bought cartons and embrace the superior taste and health benefits of a truly authentic bone broth. It’s not just a recipe; it’s a kitchen essential for reducing waste, enhancing flavor, and providing a wholesome foundation for your culinary creations.
Unlock Flavor & Nutrition with Slow Cooker Chicken Bone Broth
After enjoying a delicious roasted or rotisserie chicken, you’re often left with a pile of bones and perhaps some stray bits of meat. Instead of discarding these valuable remnants, turn them into liquid gold! Making your own chicken stock or bone broth is a fantastic way to utilize every part of the chicken, significantly enriching your cooking. While traditional methods involve simmering on the stovetop, as detailed in this chicken stock recipe, the slow cooker offers an incredibly convenient and effective alternative.
The slow cooker method stands out for its simplicity and superior results. Unlike stovetop simmering, which requires constant monitoring to maintain a gentle heat, the slow cooker provides a stable, low temperature environment. This allows for a prolonged, gentle extraction of flavor, nutrients, and gelatin from the bones, without the risk of scorching or rapid evaporation. You can confidently start your broth in the evening and wake up to a beautifully fragrant, ready-to-use batch the next morning. This “set it and forget it” approach makes it my absolute favorite way to prepare chicken bone broth.
Beyond its convenience, slow cooker bone broth is a powerhouse of nutrition. The long, slow cooking process breaks down collagen from the bones and connective tissues, releasing gelatin, amino acids, and minerals into the liquid. This gelatinous quality, often a sign of a high-quality broth, is believed to support gut health, joint function, and even skin elasticity. Plus, by making it yourself, you control all the ingredients, ensuring a pure, additive-free product. Any excess broth can be easily frozen for later use, making it the tastiest and most efficient form of leftover processing.
Essential Ingredients for Your Crockpot Bone Broth
Crafting a rich and flavorful slow cooker chicken bone broth requires a few simple, wholesome ingredients. The precise quantities can be found in the detailed recipe card at the conclusion of this guide, but here’s a closer look at what you’ll need and why each component is vital:
Preparing Your Chicken Bones and Leftovers
A common question is whether chicken bones and leftover meat need to be thoroughly cleaned before making broth. The answer is a resounding no, and in fact, it’s often beneficial to leave them as is! Any residual meat, skin, or crispy bits from your cooked chicken (especially if it was well-seasoned or roasted) will impart an incredible depth of flavor to your broth. These small additions contribute to a richer, more complex taste that you simply can’t achieve with bare bones alone. Don’t worry about straining out these solids; that’s the final step. If you’re looking for delicious ways to get those chicken bones in the first place, try a whole roasted chicken with potatoes or a succulent whole chicken from the slow cooker!
If you don’t have enough leftover bones from a single meal, you can also save chicken scraps (bones, skin, wing tips, neck) in a freezer bag until you have enough for a full batch. Many butchers also sell chicken carcasses or soup bones specifically for making broth, which can be an excellent and cost-effective option.
Selecting the Best Herbs for Flavor
Herbs are the soul of a flavorful broth. This recipe traditionally calls for thyme, bay leaf, and parsley, which provide a classic aromatic foundation. However, don’t limit yourself! Rosemary offers a piney, fragrant note, while sage adds an earthy warmth, and oregano brings a slightly pungent, peppery kick. For an extra layer of spice, a few whole peppercorns or even a small amount of chopped red pepper can be a delightful addition. Fresh herbs tend to release more vibrant flavors, but dried herbs work perfectly well, especially for long cooking times in the slow cooker.
Consider tying fresh herbs together with kitchen twine (a “bouquet garni”) for easy removal after simmering. This ensures you get all the flavor without having to fish out individual leaves. Experiment with combinations to find your perfect flavor profile!
Which Vegetables Enhance Your Homemade Broth?
The “aromatics” form the foundational flavor base for almost any good stock or broth. Carrots, garlic, celery, and onion are the traditional “mirepoix” (or its variations) and are essential for their ability to impart a sweet, savory, and robust flavor. But your options don’t stop there! Leeks offer a milder, sweeter onion flavor, while a quartered tomato can add a subtle umami and acidity that brightens the overall taste. Mushrooms, especially dried ones, contribute a deep, earthy note. Even vegetable scraps like onion skins, carrot peels, and celery ends can be saved in a freezer bag and added to your slow cooker, further reducing food waste and boosting flavor.
Ensure vegetables are coarsely chopped; there’s no need for fine dicing as they will be strained out anyway. The goal is maximum flavor extraction over a long period. Using a variety of vegetables not only enhances flavor but also contributes a broader spectrum of nutrients to your finished bone broth.
Step-by-Step Guide: Preparing Your Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Bone Broth
Making this slow cooker chicken bone broth is remarkably straightforward. For a detailed, printable recipe with a step-by-step breakdown, please refer to the recipe card located at the bottom of this blog post. But for now, let’s walk through the simple process:
This is truly one of the simplest and most rewarding recipes you can make. Begin by placing your chicken carcass, any remaining leftover chicken bones and meat, roughly chopped vegetables, and chosen herbs into the basin of your slow cooker. Fill the slow cooker with water until all the ingredients are submerged. Set your slow cooker to the “low” setting and let it work its magic for at least 8 hours, though a 10-12 hour or even overnight simmer will yield an even richer, more gelatinous broth. Once the simmering is complete, carefully strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding the solids. What you’re left with is a wonderfully aromatic and nutritious base, ready to elevate countless meals.
- Can you make bone broth in the slow cooker on high heat?
No, it’s generally not recommended. The essence of a truly great bone broth lies in the slow, gentle extraction of flavors, collagen, and minerals. High heat can cause the liquid to boil too vigorously, which can lead to a cloudy broth and may not allow for the optimal breakdown of collagen that creates that desirable gelatinous texture. “Low and slow” is the golden rule for bone broth, ensuring maximum flavor and nutritional benefits. - Should you add salt to your homemade bone broth?
My strong recommendation is to prepare your chicken bone broth with little to no salt. This offers maximum versatility for future use. The ideal salt content will vary greatly depending on whether you’re using the broth for a delicate soup, a robust sauce, or a flavorful ragout. By keeping the broth unsalted (or minimally salted), you can adjust the seasoning precisely when you incorporate it into your final dish, preventing it from becoming overly salty. - I have a layer of fat on my broth—is that normal?
Yes, it’s completely normal and often desirable to have a layer of fat on your homemade chicken broth. This fat not only adds flavor but also helps to preserve the broth. If you prefer a leaner broth, simply let the stock cool completely. The fat will solidify on the surface, making it very easy to skim off with a spoon or a slotted spoon. You can discard it, or even save it for cooking (like rendering chicken schmaltz). - My broth is gelatinous or thicker after cooling. Is something wrong?
Quite the opposite! A gelatinous or jelly-like consistency when cooled is a hallmark of a well-made bone broth and indicates that a good amount of collagen has been extracted from the bones. This gelatin is what gives bone broth many of its celebrated health benefits for gut and joint health. As soon as you gently reheat the broth, it will return to a liquid state, ready for use. Embrace the jiggle! - My broth isn’t perfectly clear. How can I fix that?
It’s very common for homemade broths to be slightly cloudy, and it’s important to remember that clarity is primarily an aesthetic concern, not an indicator of flavor or quality. The subtle cloudiness won’t affect the taste or shelf life. While there are methods to clarify broth (such as simmering with egg whites after straining, then carefully removing the solidified egg white raft), these steps are often unnecessary for a home cook. If you have significant solid particles, ensure you’ve strained it through a sufficiently fine-mesh sieve, and allow any remaining small particles to settle to the bottom before carefully ladling off the clear liquid from the top. - I don’t have enough chicken leftovers. What can I do?
This is a common scenario! You can supplement your chicken leftovers with raw chicken parts such as chicken feet (excellent for gelatin), necks, backs, or even just a few raw chicken bones from your butcher. You can also significantly boost the flavor and nutrition by adding extra vegetables and herbs. I often save vegetable scraps (onion peels, carrot ends, celery tops, herb stems) in a freezer bag. When it’s time to make broth, I simply toss these frozen scraps directly into the slow cooker along with the chicken. These saved vegetables can stay good for up to three months in the freezer and are perfect for a resourceful, flavorful broth.
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📖 Recipe
RECIPE CARD
Andréa
Pin Recipe
Equipment
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Chef’s knife
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Slow cooker (6-quart or larger recommended)
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Fine mesh sieve
Ingredients
- 1 chicken carcass, leftover chicken bones, and meat (or 1-2 lbs mixed chicken bones like backs, necks, feet)
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 1 onion, unpeeled and quartered
- 5 carrots , cleaned and coarsely sliced
- 2 stalks celery, cleaned and cut into large pieces
- 5 twigs fresh parsley
- 3 twigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 5-8 cups water, enough to fully cover all ingredients in the slow cooker
All my recipes are written both in Metric (gram / ml) and US Customary (cups / pounds). Here you can select which type of amount you would like to see.
Instructions
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Carefully place the chicken carcass, leftover bones, and any remaining meat into the bottom of your slow cooker. This forms the flavor foundation.1 chicken carcass
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Evenly spread the smashed garlic, quartered onion, coarsely sliced carrots, and large pieces of celery over the chicken bones.3 cloves garlic, 1 onion, 5 carrots, 2 stalks celery
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Complete the aromatic layer by adding the fresh parsley, thyme, and bay leaves on top of the vegetables.5 twigs parsley, 3 twigs dried thyme, 2 bay leaves
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Pour in enough cold water to completely cover all the ingredients. Do not fill past the max fill line of your slow cooker. Place the lid on securely.5-8 cups water
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Set your slow cooker to the LOW setting and allow it to simmer for 8 to 12 hours. For an even richer, more potent broth, you can safely leave it on overnight or for up to 24 hours. The longer it simmers, the more flavor and nutrients are extracted.
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Once the simmering time is complete, carefully unplug the slow cooker. Allow the broth to cool slightly, then strain it through a fine-mesh sieve into a large heat-proof bowl or container, discarding all the solids (bones, vegetables, herbs). Your homemade chicken bone broth is now ready to use, freeze, or store.
Notes
2. Herb Variations – This recipe utilizes the classic combination of fresh thyme, bay leaf, and parsley. However, you can easily customize the flavor profile. Other delicious additions to chicken stock include rosemary (for an earthy, woody note), sage (for a savory, slightly peppery flavor), or oregano (for an aromatic, Mediterranean touch). For a subtle kick, consider adding a few whole black peppercorns or a small amount of chopped red pepper.
3. Vegetable Additions & Scraps – Carrots, garlic, celery, and onion form the essential aromatic base for any good stock due to their rich flavor contributions. Don’t hesitate to experiment with other vegetables like leeks (for a milder onion flavor), quartered tomatoes (for a hint of acidity and umami), or mushrooms (for a deep, earthy depth). I often embrace a zero-waste approach by using vegetable scraps, such as onion skins, carrot peels, and celery ends, which I collect in a freezer bag. These can be added directly to the slow cooker from frozen, staying good for up to 3 months and contributing fantastic flavor to your broth.
4. Salt Content – It’s highly advisable to prepare this basic chicken bone broth with no added salt. The main reason for this is versatility: the required salt content will vary significantly depending on whether you use the broth for a hearty soup, a delicate sauce, or a rich ragout. By keeping the broth unsalted, you retain complete control over the final seasoning of your dishes, ensuring they are never too salty.
5. Removing the Fat Layer – After cooking, you may notice a layer of chicken fat on top of your stock. This is natural and adds a layer of richness. If you prefer a lighter broth, simply let the stock cool completely to room temperature, then transfer it to the refrigerator. The fat will solidify on the surface, making it incredibly easy to lift and scoop off with a spoon or slotted spoon before reheating.
6. Gel-like Consistency (A Good Sign!) – Don’t be alarmed if your cooled broth becomes thick and jelly-like. This is a clear indicator of a high-quality bone broth, rich in collagen and gelatin extracted from the bones during the long simmering process. This gelling is what contributes to many of the health benefits associated with bone broth. Rest assured, upon gentle reheating, the broth will liquify again and be perfectly ready for use.
7. Storage Tips
Proper storage is key to enjoying your homemade slow cooker chicken bone broth for an extended period. Always allow the stock to cool quickly to room temperature before storing.
- Refrigerator: Store the slow cooker chicken broth in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezer: For longer storage, pour the cooled stock into freezer-safe containers, jars, or heavy-duty freezer bags. Remember to leave about an inch of headspace in containers as liquids expand when frozen. This way, your chicken stock can be kept for up to three months. Thaw frozen broth overnight in the refrigerator before use, or gently reheat from frozen in a saucepan. TIP: For convenient, portion-sized additions to sauces or quick sautés, freeze small amounts of bone broth in ice cube trays. Once solid, transfer the cubes to a freezer bag.
- Reheating: To reheat, simply warm the desired amount of broth over medium heat on the stovetop until it’s hot but not necessarily boiling.
8. Nutritional Values – The nutritional values provided are an estimate per serving (1 cup) of this crockpot bone broth and may vary slightly based on specific ingredients and precise quantities used.
Nutrition
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Ways to Enjoy Your Homemade Chicken Bone Broth
Once you’ve made a batch of this flavorful, nourishing slow cooker chicken bone broth, the culinary possibilities are endless! It’s an indispensable ingredient that can elevate simple meals to gourmet experiences. Here are just a few ideas for how to use your liquid gold:
- Soups and Stews: This is the most obvious use! Use your homemade broth as the base for any chicken noodle soup, vegetable soup, minestrone, or hearty stew. Its rich flavor will make a significant difference.
- Sauces and Gravies: Replace water or store-bought broth in your favorite sauce or gravy recipes. It adds depth and a silky texture that store-bought options can’t match.
- Cooking Grains: Cook rice, quinoa, couscous, or pasta in chicken bone broth instead of water for an instant boost of flavor and nutrition.
- Sautéing Vegetables: Use a splash of broth when sautéing vegetables to deglaze the pan or add moisture without extra oil.
- Comforting Sip: Sometimes, the best way to enjoy bone broth is simply to warm it up and sip it plain, perhaps with a pinch of salt and fresh herbs. It’s incredibly comforting and nourishing, especially when you’re feeling under the weather.
- Risotto and Polenta: Achieve a wonderfully creamy and flavorful risotto or polenta by slowly adding warm bone broth during the cooking process.
- Freezing for Later: Don’t let any go to waste! Freeze in ice cube trays for small portions, or in larger containers for future big batches of soup.
Embrace the versatility of your homemade slow cooker chicken bone broth and let it inspire new and delicious creations in your kitchen!
More Delicious Chicken & Soup Recipes
- Asian-Style Chicken Noodle Soup
- Healthy Lasagna Soup
- Dutch Koninginnensoep (Creamy Chicken Soup)
- Homemade Japanese Chicken Ramen