Slow Cooker Beef Broth-Brodo di Carne

Making Slow Cooker Beef Broth-Brodo di Carne using your slow cooker is very simple and requires almost no hands-on time at all with delicious results. Homemade bone broth has many health benefits and can be used in various Italian recipes.

When the temperatures finally cool down here, you can find a regular rotation of soups and broths being made in my slow cooker or Dutch oven and even your Instant Pot.  Beef broth (brodo di carne)is one of my favorites to make!

There are so many different broth options available, but no matter how fancy the brand, nothing compares to your own homemade Slow Cooker Beef Broth-Brodo di Carne. It is so comforting to come home and smell the lovely broth that has been cooking away in the slow cooker all day. It is just delicious to take a cup out and sip it slowly at the end of a stressful day. It’s sometimes even better for me than a hot cup of coffee.

HOW DO YOU  MAKE BEEF BROTH IN THE SLOW COOKER? 

The whole thing is pretty simple to put together. A really great homemade broth has a variety of bones and meat scraps from beef and chicken. For this broth, I stuck with just beef. For a richer and more intensely flavored broth, use more beef. If you want a lighter broth, you could also add some chicken to the broth.

• Getting it started: You have to first brown your meat. Once they are nicely browned, you add the meat to the slow cooker. The next step is to add in all your chopped vegetables. I chopped mine in large pieces. Cover it all with water, season with some salt to your taste,  and set the temperature to low.

• Be sure to check the broth occasionally and skim off any foam from the surface and add more water if needed to keep the ingredients covered. There may not be any foam, as some cuts of meat make more foam than others. I cooked mine on low for about 10 hours. You can cook it for 8-12 hours. The broth is done when it is a rich color and very flavorful.

• When it’s ready: Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer. You could reserve any meat and vegetables to use for another recipe or for a soup.

• I usually make the broth a day in advance, let it cool to room temperature, and refrigerate overnight. The next day you can easily remove all the fat that solidifies on the surface. Don’t be alarmed if it’s a jelly like consistency; it will turn to liquid again once you heat it up.

Can you freeze homemade bone broth?

If you don’t use up your broth within 5 days, it can be frozen! Or freeze it once it cools down to have your own homemade and delicious bone broth whenever you need it. Keep frozen for up to 3 months.

• Freeze your bone broth in silicone trays. Store each portion (it’s a puck of broth) in zipped lock freezer bags.
• Each portion is 1/3 cup. I freeze my bone broth in silicone trays, and then store the broth “pucks” in zip top freezer bags. So convenient for when you’re using in a recipe. It is essential if you’re prepping for recipes and such a lifesaver for when you’re craving a cup of broth to have it frozen and on hand!

If you don’t have a slow cooker, simply make it in a Dutch oven or large stock pot on the stove and let it slowly cook. If you just roasted a chicken, don’t throw out those bones! Follow the same recipe using the chicken bones. Nothing goes to waste and you’ll have an incredible homemade bone broth to start out the year!

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post updated from 1/17

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5 from 4 votes

Slow Cooker Beef Broth-Brodo di Carne

Making beef broth using your slow cooker is very simple and requires almost no hands-on time at all with delicious results. Homemade bone broth has many health benefits and can be used in various Italian recipes.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 20 mins

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: beef broth, slow-cooker

Servings: 8 cups

Author: Savoring Italy

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. beef bones
• 1 large onion peeled and quartered
• 4 large carrots peeled and cut in half
• 4 celery stalks cut in half
• 1/2 bunch of parsley
• bay leaf optional
• 1-2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Brown the beef bones in a medium sized skillet over medium heat in the vegetable oil. Season with salt and pepper to your taste (I used about 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 of pepper).
• When the beef bones are browned (approximately 10-15 minutes), transfer them to the slow cooker.
• Add in the vegetables, parsley and bay leaf (if you're using one).
• Cover with water. At the this point, add a little more salt if needed (to your taste).
• Cook on high for about 3 hours and skim the any foam that comes to the top.
• Once it is simmering at a low boil (mine was at about 3 hours), change the temperature to low, and cook for about another 5-7 hours (I cooked mine total 8 hours).
• Remove the parsley, bay leaf, vegetables and the bones; strain the broth.
• Refrigerate overnight and the next day remove any fat that has solidified on the surface.

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