Bone broth has been big news the last few years. Many of us already have been making it for a long time (decades) and don’t need to be convinced of its value, although we’re always glad to have our opinion backed by competent authorities.

Part of the health benefit of broth comes from herbs which contribute their medicinal essence as well as their flavour. I grow many culinary and medicinal herbs, and dry them for a year-round supply. To keep them organized while close at hand, Jim built shelves under the kitchen cabinets so I could store pint jars horizonally in the smallest possible amount of space. Quart jars fit too. I love the efficiency, as well as the cozy, satisfying sight of all these herbs put by for when we need them.

What I didn’t love so much was opening every single jar each time I make broth, usually once or twice a week. Since in the back of my mind I’m always looking for efficiencies (ask me about my sock system sometime), one day the light dawned.

Now I prepare a dozen 4-ounce jars of herbs at one time. Reaching into the pantry for a pre-measured herb mixture makes me happy every time I pop it into a batch of soup stock.

Herbs to Use for Broth

These jars contain oregano, sage, peppercorns, bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, and grey celtic sea salt. Parsley is also important but doesn’t appear here because I’ve already used up my dried parsley supply. Fortunately, fresh parsley is up in the garden now. All is as it should be.

My dried herbs are stored as whole leaves and sprigs. I generally cook by following a mental template rather than a recipe – a generous pinch of this, a few sprigs of that. I love the strong taste of savoury herbs and tend to be heavy-handed because I know how good they are for my health. If you want to pre-measure some broth herbs from your spice cupboard, I offer this ratio as a starting place. Adjust for more or less flavour depending on your personal taste.

• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp parsley
• ½ tsp sage
• ¼ tsp rosemary
• ½ tsp granuated garlic
• 1 tbsp onion flakes or 1 tsp powdered onion
• 8 to 12 peppercorns
• 1 or 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon grey celtic sea salt

How to Make Bone Broth

In a crockpot, use filtered water to cover the carcass of a duck or chicken, or half of the bones from a turkey. Beef bones are great to use instead if you have them. Along with the bones, the jar of herbs, and filtered water, add 1/4 cup of vinegar to help release the minerals from the bones. I also throw in fresh parsley, chives, garlic scapes, and onion skins. All of this will be strained out when the broth is finished, so stems, skins and sprigs are fine. They just add more goodness. Let the crockpot cook on low for twenty hours. Strain and store your broth in the fridge. Use it within five days, or freeze it for longer storage.