I’ve had a number of inquiries recently on how to make bone broth in a slow cooker like the Vita-Clay.
Since I’ve already posted about how to make meat stock, I thought I would post my recipe for making bone broth in a clay slow cooker too.
Why make broth in a clay slow cooker anyway? Why not a speedy Instant Pot, a crockpot or a stainless steel stockpot? The reason is because bone broth is slightly acidic due to the addition of vinegar (raw or homemade apple cider vinegar is ideal) to help draw out nutrients into the broth.
This acidic pH contributes to leaching of heavy metals most notably carcinogenic nickel and excessive amounts of chromium from cookware made with stainless steel. Compelling research on the subject caused me to switch to clay for making broth several years ago.
Slow Cooker Bone Broth
Note that the clay used to make a Vita-Clay slow cooker is tested for purity.
It is 100% lead-free, so don’t be swayed by the astroturfed online “reviews” that say otherwise just to sell a competitive product.
Below is my recipe for making chicken bone broth in a Vita-Clay. It is basically the same to make beef broth, you just extend the slow cooking time so it is roughly double the time to make chicken broth.
Slow Cooker Bone Broth Recipe
How to make broth in a clay based slow cooker like the Vita-Clay.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken carcasses preferably pastured and organic
- filtered water to cover
- 3 carrots chopped, preferably organic
- 3 celery sticks chopped, preferably organic
- 2 onions medium, chopped, preferably organic
- 1 Tbl apple cider vinegar homemade or packaged in glass
- 4 chicken feet optional
Instructions
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Place the chicken carcasses and optional chicken feet in the clay pot.
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Add the chopped vegetables and add enough filtered water to cover (about 4 quarts).
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Stir in apple cider vinegar and secure the cover.
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Cook on "low" or "soup" for 6 hours.
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Check pot and top up with additional filtered water if needed. Cook on "low" or "soup" for an additional 6 hours.
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Strain bones and vegetables.
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Cool on the counter and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Skim off chicken fat and reserve in a small glass container for cooking.
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Freeze broth you will not use in a week. Use as a base for soups and sauces.
Vita clay has come out with a bone broth dedicated pot and wondering if you know what the difference in using it vs. the standard model which I understand is like a cross between a pressure cooker and a slow cooker because of the type of lid. The bone broth model does not have the same lid so wondering if one would need to cook the ones longer.
I have the bone broth Vita-Clay model as well as the two standard models (large and small). The bone broth model is better as it is much larger. It doesn’t cook any longer than the standard models and I’ve made broth in both.
I believe it’s ceramic. It’s a Rival brand.
As long as the ceramic is lead free and tested for purity, should be fine. Do not use if there are any chips or cracks though just to be safe.
There is no meta in my crockpot insert. How can it leach metals from a nonmetal crock?
What are the materials? My guess is that the insert is made of worse materials unless its made of titanium.
I recently purchased a Chinese clay pot. It was a bit expensive. Do you know if this is a safe way to make bone broth? Pinterest has a lot of recipes using this kind of clay pot
Make sure the pot is made of pure clay only and the clay is tested for purity like the Vita-Clay
My crockpot is not stainless steel or nonstick. I bought it in the mid-1990s. Would it be safe to use?
Would be impossible to know unless you know exactly what it is made out of. Perhaps aluminum? Probably not would be my guess. The 1990’s wasn’t exactly an era known for use of quality materials!
Sarah, isn’t the Instant Pot insert also made out of regular stainless steel? Which makes it not the best medium to use the acidic ACV?
I would not recommend the Instapot for making bone broth!
Hi Sara, how about a large cast iron pot? The color may turn out rusty red, but do you consider safe? (I do recall you saying it might be a problem for males, but in my case, I am living alone and a single woman) 🙂
Too much iron can definitely be problematic for some men AND menopausal women. And, given how long broth simmers, there could be a lot of iron in there if the cast iron is not enameled (I’m assuming not from what you’ve said). More on that here: https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/the-health-hazards-of-cast-iron-pans/
If you are not menopausal, it should be fine 🙂
Do the impurities in the broth ( scum) rise to the top when using a vita clay? If not do they remain in the stock?
Yes they do and skimming it off is always the best way to go. Because it is a slow cooker, the broth comes to a boil more slowly (about 30 minutes or so), so you will have to keep an eye on it because once the boil is slowly reached the scum disappears back into the broth. Great question! Thanks for chiming in!
Another point … the better quality chickens you get, the less scum (if any) you will get. If you are using conventional chickens, you will typically get a lot of scum, so skimming is most important. If using good quality pastured organic chickens, you probably won’t get much scum if at all, so if you skip that step, it isn’t such a big deal. I’ve had folks tell me paying the premium for pastured organic chickens isn’t worth it … I tell them to compare making broth using conventional and then they are quickly convinced just by the amount of scum on broth made with the conventional chickens!
Um, what about cheapo crock pots from Walmart?
Making an acidic dish like bone broth in a cheap crockpot made with nonstick materials or a more expensive crockpot made with stainless steel is not a good practice as you will end up with toxins in your bone broth! I have not yet found a crockpot that is made of safe materials for making bone broth.
Thank you , thank you! I just got my vitaclay recently and haven’t made chicken broth yet as I wasn’t sure what to do. Can’t wait to try this out!