- ½ cup grass-fed butter
- 5 large sweet yellow onions
- 2 quarts beef bone broth*
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 6 ounces Extra Sharp Cheddar (like Kerrygold Dubliner), Parmesan, and/or Gruyere cheese*
- Slice the onions into thick rings.
- Melt the butter in an 8 quart stock pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring regularly, until translucent-- about 7 - 8 minutes. Do NOT brown the onions. If they start to sizzle, turn the heat down and keep cooking over low. Cook time here will depend on how thick you’ve sliced your onions.
- Add the beef bone broth, thyme, salt and pepper. Turn the heat down to low and simmer uncovered about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. The broth will thicken and the onions will become incredibly soft and sweet.
- Preheat the broiler.
- Slice the cheese thin. Place 4 ramekins or oven-proof soup bowls onto a cookie sheet and fill each with soup. Top with plenty of sliced, sharp cheese.
- Broil until the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown on top, about 1 ½ - 2 minutes. Watch this carefully, as broilers vary and the cheese can burn quickly.
- Serve hot with a nice green salad.
*NOTE #2: You can eat this soup without the cheese, and it’s delicious. Just skip right over steps 5 - 7. If you’re using cheese, you can use just one of these listed, but the best flavor happens when you blend the three.
Do you ever think: “Why is everyone freaking out about bone broth?”
Some call it a “health craze.” Others say it’s the “next magic potion in the eternal quest for perfect health.” ABC Television even featured our bone broth recipe in front of 3 million people on TV!
But drinking bone broth certainly isn’t new. It’s steeped in centuries of human existence.
There’s even a South American Proverb that says: “A good broth can raise the dead.”
After using bone broth as a hangover cure for the past few years, I can say they’re right on the money.
These days, big-time celebs like Kobe Bryant, Salma Hayek, and (of course) Gwyneth Paltrow are drinking broth to look and feel younger and healthier.
Even Bob Harper, host of The Biggest Loser, is drinking bone broth.
Well my podcast @fatburnman told me to drink #bonebroth & my buddy Dallas Hartwig said I should. #downthehatch pic.twitter.com/OqgQ2E5wSX
— Bob Harper (@MyTrainerBob) October 11, 2015
But can bone broth really turn back the clock?
What Are The Health Benefits of Bone Broth?
Slow-simmered bone broth is a nutrient-dense powerhouse. And when The Wild Diet won weigh-in after weigh-in on ABC TV, bone broth was our secret weapon. Kurt lost 16 pounds the first week he tried broth!
As he sipped it, he said, “I like it! This is just like the way my grandma used to make us soup!”
Exactly.
You can make bone broth by simmering animal bones (preferably pasture-raised or wild caught) in a slow cooker. Bone broth will be ready in 10 – 24 hours (for poultry and seafood), or 24 – 48 hours for beef bones.
Why is bone broth different from regular broth (or a bouillon cube, for that matter)? This traditional way of slow cooking the bones with a splash of vinegar draws out nutritious collagen. Slow cooking broths also releases amino acids, minerals, glycine, and gelatin—which helps heal the gut and reduce inflammation.
Plus, bone broths are rich in nutrients that are difficult to source elsewhere, including vital minerals like calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, and potassium.
Drinking Bone Broth For Beauty & Weight Loss
Bone broth could be one of your most powerful tools for both your beauty regimen and your weight-loss plan.
Do you suffer from any of these skin conditions?
- Eczema
- Cracked, calloused feet
- Dry skin
- Broken or weak nails
- Wrinkles
- Thinning hair
The nutrients in bone broth nourish skin from the inside out and strengthens nails and hair.
Soup is the new sexy. #BoneBroth #TheWildDiet Share on XAre you struggling with those last few pounds, or are you just starting on your weight-loss journey? There are many reasons to get your broth on.
Bone broth to heal the gut. Collagen in bone broth strengthens your gut lining, reversing leaky gut that can lead to low-grade chronic inflammation. High levels of glycine and glutamine in bone broth also help heal intestinal issues. These amino acids keep the lining of the gut intact, which promotes better digestion.
Bone broth to boost joint health and mobility. Workouts are impossible when your knees hurt, your back aches, or you have an injury that won’t heal. Bone broth actually contains glucosamine and chondroitin, the very supplement many doctors prescribe for patients with arthritis and other joint pain. Real food for the win!
The glucosamine and chondroitin in bone broth helps strengthen the cartilage, which is what prevents your bones from rubbing together which causes pain when you move.
Bones are full of protein, specifically collagen. Collagen, when cooked for many hours, breaks down into gelatin and other amino acids (glucosamine, proline and glycine to name a few). The presence of gelatin in bone broth is why a true bone broth will gel when you put it in the fridge!
The collagen, gelatin and other amino acids in bone broth also give your body the raw materials it needs to rebuild tendons, bones and ligaments. Recent studies show that bone broth improves the symptoms of arthritis and joint pain.
Want to work out without joint pain? Try a sip of bone broth. Share on XBone broth fasting to reduce cravings. If you read The Wild Diet or watch me on ABC TV, you already know that I enjoy intermittent fasting. Drinking bone broth during the fasting period is fantastic because it’s low calorie, easy on the stomach, and nutrient-dense.
Bone broth can even be a surprisingly satisfying savory substitute for coffee in the morning.
Alyson and I drink bone broth almost every day, and you can usually find a slow-cooker with simmering bones on our kitchen counter.
How To Use Bone Broth In Soup And Stocks
But if you want to take your broth to the next level of flavor, you can also as a base for soups. Our recipe for French Onion Soup (at the top of this page) is a great way to get your feet wet. Enjoy!
What Are People Doing With Bone Broth?
Here’s what our Fat-Burning Tribe members are saying about Bone Broth…
Katys says:
Jay Says:
Rachel says:
Jennifer says:
When you incorporate bone broth into your diet over the next few weeks (we recommend 4-8oz per day for optimal health benefits), pay attention to how your body feels…
Do you feel less tired, fewer aches and pains, or fewer digestive issues?
Have you noticed any improvements in your skin, hair, nails or the way you feel since you started drinking bone broth? Share your experience with us in the comments below!
Love French Onion soup. Can’t wait to try this!
I lost 20 pounds by drinking only homemade bone broth on the two days (not consecutive days) a week I fasted. I omitted carbs and alcohol from my diet for 21 days and lost 20 pounds. Bone broth curbs your appetite and is delicious when made into a soup. Straight bone broth, without veggies and herbs is pretty hard to get down, at least that is what I found.
I believe you can use root vegetables like celery root,carrots, parsley root, cabbage do not shred , after cooking you can take that out and have delish flavored broth. We cook chicken broth like that for simmering for few hours..Place quartered chicken in cold water put all veggies I mention above plus half roasted onion and green parsley, bring to boil and reduce heat and let simmer add salt and pepper to taste. chicken taste great or use for chicken for chicken salad.
Tried to make beef broth in crock pot one time that smelled so bad and I could barely get it down. My poor daughter walked around the house dry heaving for two days! Does this sound weird? Could bones have been bad? Bought them grass fed and frozen from a local farm so they should have been good. Was expecting it to taste like beef stew. Has anyone else ever had this experience?
Hi Chris, bummer! It could have been bad bones, but you might want to try poultry (chicken or turkey) broth instead of beef broth. The sulfur and minerals in beef bones can make their broth smell like swamp. If you have a garage, making broth in a crockpot out there avoids the smells if family members find them too much to take.
Just remember – when in doubt, go for chicken broth. Everyone loves the smell and taste of that. 🙂
Use a pressure cooker. No smell!
This exact thing happened to me, I fasted for 20 days. The first 9 just water but decided to drink bone broth on day 10. Thinking it would be wonderful to have warm somewhat salty drink. I had made my bone broth in my instapot and slow cooked it till I could hand crush the bones. The first drink hit the spot. After that I couldn’t stand the smell. I had made both chicken and beef. I didnt want to waste all the broth I had made so I tried freezing in cupcake pans to make using for soup easier. I’m sure if someone had tried taking a video of me trying to get it in the pans it would have gone viral. I dry heaved, gaged, and threw up every time I pulled it out of the fridge to deal with it. Just thinking about it now makes me want to gag. Think I ruined myself for bone broth
I have been making bone broth for almost one year now. Taking advice I learned on the internet with beef bones, I roast them in the oven at 450 degrees until they are browned and a lovely crispness to them. Also do this with any raw bones such as cow and pig feet. My house smells terrific. No need to do this with left over cooked bones of course but always raw bones….roast first.
Hey all, I tried a batch and experienced the same awful smell and the taste was far from pleasant so I did some on-line research and found a solution that worked for me. First you “blanche” the bones by putting them in boiling water (it has to be boiling before you put them in) for 20 minutes. Then you roast the bones in a high degree oven 375-ish for an additional 20-25 minutes. This part browns the bones a bit and makes a nice flavor in the broth. Then I make the broth as described. For me this made a huge difference and the broth now has a pleasant smell and a yummy flavor that I can sip and enjoy. I do use grass fed beef and find that makes a big difference too. Hope that helps.
I have been suffering from hair loss. Hope this soup gives me a good solution…. 🙂
Excellent recipe. It is known fact this soup is an excellent remedy for arthritis pain.
Thank you for sharing. I’ve always loved drinking bone broth. Since I can’t make my own I’m drinking Au Bon Broth. It’s great! It tastes delicious and it’s organic.
I’m making this for the fourth time today and just wanted to say thanks for the great recipe. It’s so easy and delicious and I’m just wondering how is it that this is supposed to be 4 servings. I get 8. I don’t think I have a ramekin that would be big enough for 16 oz. each. 🙂