Don’t toss those bones after cooking your bird, they’re chock full of vitamins minerals and FLAVOR! This turkey bone broth makes a killer base for soups, stews, sauces, and gravies.
Table of Contents: Turkey Bone Broth
Make sure to keep scrolling past the recipe card for a deep dive into this turkey bone broth recipe. We cover topics like, ingredients and equipment you’ll need, step by step cooking instructions, proper storage, and some common FAQ’s.
Turkey Bone Broth Recipe
Turkey Bone Broth
Turkey bones, veggies, herbs, and spices make this versatile bone broth.
2
quarts5
minutes7
hoursIngredients
Turkey Bones – from one med/lrg turkey
1 1 Onion – roughly chopped
1 1 Head of Garlic – roughly chopped
2 2 Carrots – roughly chopped
4 4 Fresh Thyme – sprigs
2 2 Fresh Rosemary – sprigs
1 Tbsp 1 Black Peppercorns
2 2 Bay Leaves
3 3 Star Anise
Water – to cover (4-6) quarts
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Place the turkey bones on a baking sheet and roast them in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, until they are golden brown. While the bones are roasting, roughly chop the vegetables.
- After the bones are roasted, transfer them to a large pot. Add the chopped vegetables, herbs, and spices, and cover everything with water by a couple inches. Bring the pot to a boil, then immedietly reduce the heat to low and let simmer.
- Simmer the broth for at least 6 hours, or up to 12 hours for a richer flavor*. Use a large spoon to skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the surface. Most of this will happen sooner than later.
- Let the broth cool completely before transferring it to air tight containers. We save pickle jars and pho containers from our take out nights. They both make great broth containers. Store in the fridge or freezer.
Notes
- *The longer you cook the more the broth will reduce, this will enhance the flavor but it will leave you with less broth.
“Turkey, good to the bone”
-Tyson
WTF is Turkey Bone Broth?
Turkey bone broth is a potent, versatile, liquid made by simmering turkey bones, veggies, herbs and other seasonings for several hours. The bones are roasted, to add depth of flavor, before being added to a large pot with the other ingredients. Everything is then simmered for at least six hours, often longer. The long simmering time breaks down the bones and releases nutrients such as collagen, minerals, amino acids, and gelatin. This is the good stuff, it gives the broth its rich and savory taste. All you need to make a turkey bone broth is water and bones. But come on, you know we’re gonna put all kinds of sh*t in our broth. Ingredients like white wine, garlic, onions, salt, and fresh herbs enhance the flavor of the broth.
In addition to being a great base for stews and soups and such, this bone broth is a really awesome treat on its own. Frankie and I will pack some in a thermos and bust it out during a winter hike. It’s a GAME CHANGER! Oh, and it’s suppose to be pretty freaking good for you too. It’s believed to have a number of health benefits, such as supporting gut health, improving joint health, and strengthening the immune system. Some people even consume it as a daily supplement, believing that it can help with detoxifying the body and promoting overall wellness. freaking hippies am I right? BBC did a whole write up about it, check it out here. Top 5 Benefits of Bone Broth.
Turkey Bone Broth vs Turkey Stock
Okay, so wtf exactly is the difference here? In the simplest of terms, broth uses bones that still have meat on them, and stock doesn’t. Broth usually takes less time to simmer than stock, which often has cooking times of, upwards of 12 hours.
Often times both, broth and stock, will contain herbs and veggies for extra flavor, but stock is usually thicker because the longer cook time breaks down all of the collagen and connective tissue in the bones. Don’t waste too much time trying to decipher the difference. They’re both pretty much interchangeable.
Turkey Bone Broth Ingredients
Here’s a list of the ingredients you’ll need to make this turkey bone broth recipe. You might not want to do a long cook right after doing a laborious turkey for the holidays, but don’t toss those bones, just freeze them until our ready to make this turkey stock.
- Turkey bones: The star of the show if you will. Use the leftover bones from a cooked turkey, neck, wings, and legs. Ideally the bones should still have some meat on em.
- Vegetables: Listen to your mother and eat your veggies… or drink them in this case. Carrots, celery, onions, and garlic to be specific. You can substitute and add here, just avoid any bitter greens like cauliflower, kale, or broccoli, they’ll turn your broth into a sulfurous pit of garbage.
- Herbs and spices: We’ll be using fresh rosemary, thyme, salt and black peppercorns. Nothings off limits here though, feel free to add some bay leaves, parsley, tarragon, whatever flavors you dig.
- Water: Okay, so turkey bone broth is mostly water. But hey, so is beer.
Turkey Bone Broth Equipment
When making this turkey bone broth, or any borsht or stock for that matter; you’ll need a few tools you might not have. Here’s a list of the equipment you’ll need.
- Stock Pot: Use a large, heavy-bottomed stock pot to accommodate all the bones and other ingredients.
- Sieve/Cheese Cloth: To strain the stock and remove the solids you’ll need either a fine mesh strainer or a cheesecloth or both.
- Storage Containers: Mason jars, freezer safe tupperware or any other airtight containers for storing the finished bone broth.
How to Make Turkey Bone Broth
Follow these step by step instructions to make this turkey bone broth recipe. It’s not a fast process, but it’s something you can leave and come back to. Once you’ve got it simmering you’re just monitoring it.
Step 1: Roast Bones
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Place the turkey bones on a baking sheet and roast them in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, until they are golden brown.
While the bones are roasting, roughly chop the vegetables.
Step 2: Bring to a Boil
After the bones are roasted, transfer them to a large pot. Add the chopped vegetables, herbs, and spices, and cover everything with water by a couple inches. Bring the pot to a boil, then immedietly reduce the heat to low and let simmer.
Step 3: Simmer & Strain
Simmer the broth for at least 6 hours, or up to 12 hours for a richer flavor. Use a large spoon to skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the surface. Most of this will happen early on.
Remove the pot from heat and let it cool slightly. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth, discarding the solids.
Step 4: Cool & Store Turkey Bone Broth
Let the broth cool completely before transferring it to air tight containers. We save pickle jars and pho containers from our take out nights. They both make great bone broth and stock containers. Store in the fridge or freezer.
How to Store Turkey Bone Broth
If you plan on using your broth within the next 5 days, simply pour it into airtight containers and store it in the refrigerator. This will keep your broth fresh and flavorful, and it will be ready to use whenever you need it.
If you’re freezing your bone broth it’ll be good for up to six months. In addition to storing some in larger containers, I also like to pour some into plastic popsicle molds or ice cube trays. This way I don’t have to thaw an entire container when I need to spice up a sauce or warm up a cup to sip on.
I’ve heard of some folks pouring turkey bone broth into zip lock bags and freezing it like a teacher would stack graded papers. They say it saves space, but this just seems silly and not worth the hassle. Just use a jar or something like a recycled sour cream containers. Make sure to label and date it.
How to Use Turkey Bone Broth
All righty then. So now that you have your turkey bone broth, what the hell do you do with it? Here’s a couple applications and recipes that we like to use our turkey bone broth for.
- Sip it straight up: It’s perfect on a chilly day by the fire, or in thermos on a ski day. It’s probably my favorite way to use turkey bone broth.
- Make a soup: Making homemade broths and stocks is simple way to elevate your cooking. It really makes a big difference.
- Make risotto: You gotta have broth or stock to make risotto, its major ingredient, so make sure its a super tasty one.
- Marinade: Marinate your meats in turkey bone broth to add flavor and tenderness.
- Freeze it into ice cubes: Freeze your broth into ice cubes and use them like little flavor bombs in soups, stews, and gravies for added flavor.
Turkey Bone Broth FAQ’s
Broth still has meat on the bones when it is cooked. Stock does not.
Turkey bone broth is high in protein, collagen, and minerals such as calcium and phosphorus. It is also rich in amino acids and is believed to have health benefits such as improving gut health and reducing inflammation.
Yes, that’s exactly what you should do.
Great question, and yes! Broccoli, Kale, and cauliflower, can give the broth a strong bitter flavor, and veggies like potatoes and pumpkins break down too easily and make for a cloudy stock.
More Broth/Stock Recipes
Enjoy this recipe and need some more help making more unique stocks? We got you covered. Check out our wild mushroom stock recipe. We harvest our own golden chanterelles to make this stock. But you can use store bought chanterelles, or whatever mushrooms you prefer. Or try our crab stock recipe, we make it from the carcasses of our beloved west coast Dungeness crabs. It’s so freaking tasty and I makes the best base for our soups and stews.
EXCELLENT Crab Stock Recipe – Shellfish Satisfaction
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