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Make your own vegetable broth at home for FREE using leftover vegetable scraps! This easy recipe can be made in an Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or on the stove
Vegetable Broth is a staple in TONS of recipes and is somethingmost of us always have on hand. Store-bought broths can be a little expensive, wasteful, and/or taste kind of funny. Homemade broths are nice and all, but I’ve never been one to buy a bunch of ingredients only to throw them in a pot of water and then completely discard them, either.
The solution? Homemade Vegetable Broth, using leftover veggie scraps! It’scheap andeasy, but just asrich andflavorful.
WHAT GOES INTO VEGETABLE BROTH?
Most store-bought vegetable broth contains some combination of onion, celery, carrots, and salt – it’s also common for tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic, and/or other seasonings to be present. That’s all fine and dandy, butstore-bought broths also have a lot ofother preservatives,such as:
- Vegetable Oils
- Added Sugar or Fruit Juice Concentrate
- Gums or Thickeners
All of which aretotally unnecessary to add to homemade broth, but do help enhance the flavor and shelf life of a more processed, shelf-stable vegetable broth.
The good news? You can make your OWN vegetable broth easily from home, for FREE.
All you have to do is save up your leftover vegetable scraps (peels, ends, cores) in the freezer – seriously! Once you have enough, dump those scraps into a pot full of water and simmer. Cook for a few hours, and you’ve got yourself some tasty homemade vegetable broth.
WHAT VEGGIES SHOULD I SAVE FOR MY VEGETABLE BROTH?
Pretty much anything goes here, but certain vegetables will hold more flavor than others. Considering the main ingredients in traditional broth, I always try to have atleast some:
- Onion ends/roots (or skin that is too tough to cut) –for depth of flavor
- Celery pieces –for depth of flavor and body
- Carrot ends/peels –for sweetness
Other ingredients that I commonly add include:
- Mushroom stems and Tomato ends (these add GREAT umami flavor!)
- The “core” of peppers (sweetness)
- Stems of fresh herbs, such as Parsley and Cilantro (more depth/body)
- Stems from leafy greens, like Kale (depth)
- Tops and/or unusable parts of Sweet Potatoes and Squash (sweetness)
One of the fun things about homemade vegetable broth is that it’s a little different every time. There’s no “set recipe” and as long as you’re using the scraps of veggies that you enjoy, it’s going to taste good!
INGREDIENTS TO AVOID IN HOMEMADE VEGETABLE BROTH
Most vegetable scraps are totally fine to use for broth, but I’ve found that certain ingredients are bestin small quantities only, or avoided entirely. This includes:
- “Flavorless” Vegetables – like zucchini or white potatoes; these aren’t going to do anythingbad to the broth, but they’re not going to help it either.
- Cruciferous Vegetables – such as broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and cabbage.Some is fine, but these ingredients have a very distinct flavor – and I don’t think any of us want our veggie broth to taste like a, well,fart.
- Citrus Peels and Herbs with a Tough Stem – citrus will make your broth bitter, as willtoo many tough herbs, like rosemary, thyme, and oregano. (Some tough herbs are fine, but don’t go overboard)
A safe rule of thumb: if you don’t use too much of it in a recipe, don’t add a ton of it to your broth!
EASY STEPS TO HOMEMADE VEGETABLE BROTH
- Save up your vegetable scraps, over time.This can include vegetable peels, ends, and cores – just make sure your veggies are nice and clean before chopping! This canalso include limp veggies that are on their way out or that won’t be used before they go bad. I like to store my scraps in afreezer-safe reusable bag to reduce waste!
- Add the frozen vegetables to a large pot, then add water.
- Instant Pot / Slow Cooker– add the vegetable scraps to the device’s pot, then add enough water until the scraps are about 1″ above the water line, then cover and cook for a minimum of 3 hours (use the “Slow Cooker” function of the Instant Pot)
- Stovetop-add the vegetable scraps to a large pott, then add enough water until the scraps are about 1″ above the water line. Cover the mixture, then cook on low to medium-low heat for a minimum of three hours. depending on the seal of your pot lid, you may need to add extra water if it starts to evaporate too quickly.
- Strain the vegetables from the liquid, then add salt to taste.I use afine-mesh strainerover a large glass bowl, then transfer the liquid towide-mouthed canning jars using afunnel.You can now compost the vegetable scraps if you have one, or discard in the trash. Keep in mind that this broth is totally salt-free, and will taste much better once you add a little sodium; you can choose to do it right away, or just add more (to taste) to whatever recipe you end up using it in.
- Store in the fridge or freezer, then use as desired.Homemade Vegetable Broth will keep in the fridge for up to one week, or for up to two months in the freezer. You can freeze the broth in ice cube molds, or store it in glass jars (just be sure to leave room for the liquid to expand, or the jar will break!)
WAYS TO USE HOMEMADE VEGETABLE BROTH
- In homemade soups
- To replace oil when sautéing vegetables
- In marinades, such as this Smoky Tempeh and Chinese Five Spice Braised Tofu
- In place of water for EXTRA yummy rice or pasta, and
- For casual sipping 🙂
Did you enjoy this recipe? Please leave a review in the comments below, and if you decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
Homemade Vegetable Broth
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5 from 4 reviews
Make your own vegetable broth at home for FREE using leftover vegetable scraps! This easy recipe can be made in an Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or on the stove
- Author: Caitlin Shoemaker
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 3 Hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: about 8 cups 1x
- Category: How-To
- Method: Slow Cooker, Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 gallon-sized freezer bag of Vegetable Scraps (around 3.5 lbs / 1.6 g)
- 10 – 12 cups of water (2300–2800 ml)
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Save and Freeze Vegetable Scraps:this can include vegetable peels, ends, and cores – just make sure your veggies are nice and clean before chopping! Store the scraps in afreezer-safe reusable bagfor up to two months before using.
- Cook the Broth: once the bag of scraps is full, cook the scraps from frozen according to the following:
- Instant Pot / Slow Cooker– add the vegetable scraps to the device’s pot, then add enough water until the scraps are about 1″ above the water line, then cover and cook for a minimum of 3 hours or maximum of 6 (use the “Slow Cooker” function of the Instant Pot)
- Stovetop-add the vegetable scraps to a large pot, then add enough water until the scraps are about 1″ above the water line. Cover the mixture, then cook on low to medium-low heat for a minimum of 3 hours, maximum of 6. Depending on the seal of your pot lid, you may need to add extra water if it starts to evaporate too quickly.
- Strain the vegetables from the liquid using a fine-mesh strainerover a large bowl. Add salt to taste (if desired), then transfer the broth into jars. Compost or discard the vegetable scraps.
- Store in the fridge or freezer, then use as desired.Homemade Vegetable Broth will keep in the fridge for up to one week, or for up to two months in the freezer. You can freeze the broth in ice cube molds, or store it in glass jars (just be sure to leave room for the liquid to expand, or the jar will break!)
Notes
- Optional add-ins:I always stick to veggie scraps, but you can also add some garlic cloves, bay leaves, other spices to taste
- Recipe Yield: this recipe can easily be cut in half, or even quarters – simply cut the veggie scraps and water in the recipe by 1/2 or 1/4
- Cook Time: over years of experimentation, I’ve found 3 hours to be the minimum cook time for good-tasting broth. Longer cook times will yield a more intense broth, but the taste difference is very slight, especially when used in other recipes and not enjoyed alone.
