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“Scrappy” Homemade Vegetable Broth

Course Soups & Stews
Cuisine American

Instructions
 

  • When preparing vegetables, keep the parts you may ordinarily throw away. Examples: end and greens of carrots and other root veggies, celery, collards and kale stems, onions, beets, outer cabbage leaves, cabbage cores, organic potato ends/ peelings, stems of parsley, cilantro and other herbs. Place them in a large bag in the freezer and add to it every time you cook. When the bag is full (about 1 gallon), place the vegetables in a large stockpot and add 6-10 cups water, depending on how strong you would like your broth and the amount of vegetables. To add additional flavor and nutrients, add 5-10 peppercorns, 1-2 bay leaves, 4 dried juniper berries, and lentils and/or other vegetables, if you like. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook for about 45 minutes, until the vegetables are tender, keeping the veggies mostly immersed in the cooking broth. Remove the cover and allow the mixture to cool. In the sink, place a colander over bowl and empty the contents from the stockpot. Squeeze or press down to remove any liquid from the vegetables. Freeze (in ice cube trays for sauté cubes!) or store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Homemade vegetable broth will last up to 1 week, unfrozen. If you can, compost the cooked veggie scraps.

Notes

Don’t throw away valuable vegetable scraps! Make them into delicious broth that can be used for soups, chili, stir-fries and sautés! Keep broth handy for sautéing by freezing in ice cube trays and storing in a container or bag in the freezer. Not only does it taste great, it’s “free!”
Recipe by: Tracy Childs
Keyword broth, vegan
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