It’s THAT time of year…

Winter is upon us… the mornings are dark, the afternoons are darker… and everyone is sick of being sick! I reckon there’s a good chance that ‘immune boosting foods’ is sitting pretty atop the list of google searches this week. If you’re searching ways to support your immune system and get yourself through the winter – look no further!

Alice from the whole daily has a super cheap and cheerful AND super immune boosting soup, that’s perfect for a cold winter’s night. It’s based around the humble staple, chicken bone broth and it’s delicious!! Ticks all the boxes. If you haven’t checked Alice and her delicious, healthy recipes out yet, get over to thewholedaily.com.au, she will not disappoint.

The low-down on bone broth

  • Bone broth is full of vitamins and contains valuable minerals in a form your body can easily absorb and use, including calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulfur chondroitin, glucosamine, and a variety of trace minerals. These vitamins and minerals are important for a wide range of biological processes and drinking a regular cup of bone broth is thought to benefit the GUT, the immune system and your joints.
  • The gelatin found in bone broth is a hydrophilic colloid. It attracts and holds liquids, including digestive juices, thereby supporting proper digestion. Gelatin is also an important source of amino acids which are the basic building blocks of all proteins.
  • Bone broth also inhibits infection caused by cold and flu viruses, for example, and fights inflammation, courtesy of anti-inflammatory amino acids such as arginine
super-immunity-broth-soup

Does it have to be Chicken bone broth?

Not at all… Chicken, Beef, Lamb, Pork and even Fish all make delicious and nutritious bone broths. They all have different nutrient profiles too so don’t be afraid to mix it up.

Who would benefit from drinking bone broth?

  • Those with bowel disease, particularly inflammatory bowel disease
  • Those with other digestive and absorptive gastrointestinal issues
  • Those with joint and connective tissue issues such as Osteoarthritis
  • Those with insomnia and other sleep disorders

Ingredients for broth

  • 1 whole organic/free-range chook, raw.
  • 1 whole onion
  • 5 cloves of garlic
  • 2 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tbs black peppercorns
  • 2 tbs vinegar
  • 4 carrots
  • 2 sticks of celery
  • handful of fresh parsley
  • 3-4 litres of boiling water

Additional: 1 1/2 cup pumpkin left in large chunks

Method for broth and soup

  1. With your slow-cooker on high, add all ingredients in together (don’t leave the vinegar out as it helps to leech the nutrients out of the chicken bones).
  2. Slow-cook for 8 hours +
  3. Steam chunks of pumpkin seperately until tender
  4. Remove 4 cups of the broth and add to a blender along with the carrots, celery and any other slow-cooked vegetables you can scoop out.
  5. Pull off 1 chicken breast and blend until smooth. Adding more broth if you want to thin it out.
  6. Serve with a sprinkle of fresh parsley and a drizzle of high quality olive oil.

And most importantly, enjoy!

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