Vegetable broth is perhaps one of the simplest and most versatile ingredients to make and keep in your kitchen.
Broth has so many uses – a base for making many soups, a replacement for dairy in your mashed potatoes, a vehicle for adding flavor to rice, a braising liquid, a warm nourishing drink when you are a bit under the weather. We could go on and on.
It is also one of the simplest things to put together. Gather a few carrots, some celery, onion and garlic, and you’ve got yourself the perfect base for a good veggie broth.
Pro tip: Avoid things like red onion and peppers in your vegetable broth. They add a very distinct and bitter flavor.
Cut up each of the veggies coarsely and add them, with their peels, to a large pot. Generously season with salt and pepper, cover with water and simmer on the stove top for an hour or two. Give a taste and season as desired – keeping in mind that if you’ll be adding the broth to a recipe or dish, you may want the salt and pepper flavors to be subtle.
Strain the broth from the veggies and allow it to cool. Then store in the refrigerator or freezer until you are ready to use it.
We used our veggie broth to make a creamy Roasted Squash Soup that is completely vegan and fat free. Quite a feat! But it was delicious and a huge hit with dinner guests regardless of whether they subscribe to a vegan diet or not. Get the recipe here.
Think Making a Broth with Perfectly Good Vegetables is a Crime?
Throwing away food can be painful. And making a vegetable broth with whole onions, carrots, fresh celery and garlic can also be a bit painful, and pricey if you haven’t got the budget to buy veggies simply for turning into broth — it’s much cheaper to buy prepared broth at the grocery store… but we hope you won’t do that. Here is what we suggest instead.Whenever you peel a sustainably grown (i.e. you know the farmer and you know there no pesticide or herbicide residue of any kind) onion, garlic, or carrot, or if you trim the rough bottom off of celery, save these scraps in a container in the fridge. When the container is full, or maybe once a week, make veggie broth with them!
Place all the scraps you’ve collected into a pot, add salt, pepper and cover with water. Simmer for a few hours until all the flavor has been extracted from the scraps, then strain, and place the broth in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to use it.
