A few posts ago, I shared my grocery haul (sound ridiculous to say grocery and haul in the same sentence, but moving on…) and promised to share a post on what I use the bones I regularly buy for.
I buy the bones from Shoprite. At N99.99 (way less than a dollar) per kilogram, they are a bargain. Not only for you but also for Shoprite. Have no illusions. These bones have been cleaned off pretty much any beef so you can’t buy these and think it is a cheap way of getting beef.
I typically use the bone broth to cook food. Most savoury meals that require water, I can reasonably substitute with bone broth – beans, jollof rice, soup, even moi-moi. When you use bone stock, you can do away with seasoning cubes and achieve even tastier food. That is enough of a WIN- WIN situation for anyone to get on the bone broth bandwagon (bbb!), but there’s even more.
Beyond tasty food, there are certain benefits that come from consuming Bone Broth. Some people swear that taking a certain amount every day will even go a long way in helping to reduce/eliminate cellulite, aiding digestion and arthritis, keeping skin supple and largely wrinkle free (this comes from the Gluthathione) .
Unfortunately, I could not find any scientific research that supported the anecdotal evidence that I found, but I shall keep looking. There is also a book: Gut and Psychology Syndrome which refers to the many benefits of bone broth, including even for mental health.
I cannot touch upon them all in great detail in one post but here is an overview:
Bones are made up of many many important substances and it is assumed that most of these will be present in some quantity in Bone Broth. We are talking about minerals such as Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Sulfur, Fluoride, Sodium, Potassium. The Cartilage is thought to contain Chrondroitin (very important for Joint health), Collagen and even Hyarulonic Acid (important for skin health) amongst many other things.
I make bone broth in two ways – if I want a “polite” stock that is not as flavourful and spicy as we like it in Nigeria, I throw in celery, carrots, fresh thyme, bay leaves, black pepper and an onion. These are good for dishes that I want a subtle broth taste in. If I want to do things the Nigerian way – especially important if I am cooking our local soups, then curry, thyme, black, bay leaves, dried rosemary, Cameroun black pepper, onion, garlic, ginger e.t.c. are nestled between the bones and cooked until I have a wonderful, rich stock.
Things to note
The goodness of bone broth are not restricted to beef bones alone. You can use the bones of goat, chicken, lamb, turkey. There is bone marrow to be found anywhere there are bones and it is this marrow that we really want in our meals. That said, common sense dictates that fish bones will not yield the same goodness.
To finish, here are some tips:
- To extract the most from your bones, don’t boil. Bring up to the boil and then proceed to cook at a simmer. The longer your cook it for, the more nutrients you will extract.
- Adding a splash of Apple Cider Vinegar helps in the extraction process.
References:
Shannan MD, Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food
Sekhar RV, Patel SG, Guthikonda AP, Reid M, Balasubramanyam A, Taffet GE, Jahoor F., Deficient synthesis of glutathione underlies oxidative stress in aging and can be corrected by dietary cysteine and glycine supplementation. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.2011;94(3):847-53