Them Bones

By Katrina Severin and Natalie Bennon

The trend toward nose-to-tail cooking — using every part of an animal, even those odd and offal bits — is gaining ground among restaurant chefs and home cooks alike. And what better use for those not-usually used bits than bone broth, a healthy, nourishing take on homemade stock that also helps conscientious ranchers use the whole animal, which in turn is better for the planet?

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Know Thy Food Cooperative, our market, cafe and food-buying club in the Brooklyn neighborhood, sells freshly made bone broth, or you can make your own, following this simple, healthy recipe. (You can find the beef bones you’ll need at Know Thy Food, too!) You can slurp it up on its own, use it as a base for fantastic, hearty soups, or use it in place of water when cooking grains.

Beef Bone Broth

You’ll need a large soup pot to make this big batch of broth; freeze what you don’t need so you can have it on hand for later.

  • 1 medium yellow onion, peeled, cut into large wedges
  • 3 carrots, washed and cut in half
  • 4-5 cloves garlic, peeled, whole
  • 2 pounds beef bones
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
  • 2-3 tablespoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • 2 teaspoon red chile flakes
  • 2 tablespoon rosemary, or two fresh sprigs
  • 4-5 quarts water

1. Combine onions, garlic, carrots and beef bones and roast at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

2. Heat olive oil in large soup pot and add bone mixture.

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3. Cover and cook for about 30-40 minutes until the fat begins to pool at the bottom and darken.

4. Add apple cider vinegar, salt, cumin, red chile flakes and rosemary. Continue to cook until the bottom of the pan becomes very dark and thick.

5. Add water and bring to a boil. Boil for about 20-30 minutes.

6. Reduce heat and simmer covered for 4-8 hours. Broth should be a deep reddish brown.

7. Remove lid and allow to cool. Scoop out bones and veggies with strainer.

8. Using a strainer and a funnel, pour broth into jars and allow to cool to room temperature before refrigerating or freezing. n

Know Thy Food is a market, café and food-buying club located in SE Portland at 3434 SE Milwaukie Ave. It is consistently voted one of the top 5 family-friendly cafes in Portland. The market stocks organic vegetables; pasture-raised meat (including beef bones), dairy, and eggs; a carefully curated selection of beer and wine; local kombucha in bottles and on tap; a small bulk,
dry foods section; and much more. Bring your kids any time, but especially on weekdays at 10:30 a.m. to enjoy a kid-friendly music show. Grab breakfast or lunch at our café, which features salads, sandwiches, soups, kid fare, and much more.

Katrina Severin, the Know Thy Food chef and kitchen manager, developed this recipe. Natalie Bennon, the author, is on the Know Thy Food board of directors and has been a member of the co-op for more than 8 years. Email her directly with questions at nataliepdx@gmail.com.

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