Easy Homemade Vegetable Broth that is delicious, cheaper than store-bought and takes less than an hour to make. You can use it for soups, stews, chilli and so on.
Have you heard the expression “everything homemade is better”? I have and I totally agree with it. That’s why every time I have a chance I make my own tomato sauce, my own salad dressing and my own chicken and vegetable broth.
It’s economical, it’s quicker to make and it tastes really good. On top of that, it’s so easy! It’s one of my go to pantry staples (see this post on my 18 Healthy Pantry Recipe) All you need to do is to chop up all the vegetables, cover with water, add some herbs and simmer. And there you have it: delicious vegetable broth that tastes better than store-bought and it’s healthier since making your own, you have more control over the amount of salt that’s added and any weird ingredients that some brands add to their broth.
Making this recipe, you’ll have enough broth to make your soups, chili, stews, casseroles, and rice for weeks to come. Another staple I’ll be making this week is my Instant Pot Meat Sauce Recipe! Stocking up my fridge with these staples is my go-to on the weekends.
Some tips to make this Easy Homemade Vegetable Broth:
- Use approximately the same amount of vegetables to water. Fill a pot halfway with vegetables and then cover them with a couple of inches of water is a great amount. Your stock will have a nice amount of flavour.
- You can also add scraps of onions, carrots and celery in the stock. Whatever you have them (like when you make my Easy Roasted Vegetables Recipe), collect the scraps in a freezer bag and when you have about 2 cups of vegetable scraps, use it to make your broth. It’s a great way to not waste food in your kitchen.
- Do not simmer your vegetable broth for less than 45 minutes because your stock will lack flavor.
What ingredients are in vegetable broth?
- Olive oil
- Cloves garlic
- Onions
- Celery
- Carrots
- Tomato paste
- Water
- Bay leave
- Parsley and thyme
- Salt and pepper
Does vegetable stock go bad?
Yes, it does. So, keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days and in the freezer for up to 6 months.
What veggies are good for stock?
For a great vegetable broth you need vegetables with neutral savory flavors. Such as garlic, onions, carrots, celery and/or mushrooms. You can also use leeks, shallots or parsnips. Whenever I make my Mushroom Cauliflower Rice Skillet, I will save some mushrooms and cauliflower for the stock.
What should you not put in vegetable stock?
Unfortunately not every vegetable is good to make vegetable broth. Tomatoes, asparagus and cabbage are not considering great veggies to make vegetable broth. Either starchy vegetable since they can make the vegetable broth very gummy. Beet is another vegetable that can overpower the taste of the vegetable broth and zucchini and green beans can make the vegetable broth tastes a bit bitter.
Want something sweet to make this weekend along with your vegetable stock? Try my Peanut Butter White Chocolate Chip Cookies!
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Easy Homemade Vegetable Broth Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 large onions roughly chopped
- 4 ribs celery roughly chopped
- 3 carrots chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 8 cups water
- 3 dried bay leaves
- A few sprigs of parsley and thyme
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or stockpot, heat olive oil over medium heat.
- Add the garlic, onions, celery, and carrots. Sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring often.
- Add tomato paste and cook for one more minute.
- Add the water, bay leaves, parsley, and thyme. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes.
- Strain the vegetable broth into a large heat-proof bowl or pot.
- Use immediately or let the broth cool down. Once has cooled, transfer it to freezer bags and store it in the freezer for up to 6 months. (Pour about 2 cups of vegetable broth in the freezer bags).
Tips
- Make sure the ingredients you use for the stock are fresh. While it's easy to save odds and ends throughout the week to throw into a stock, it's best to double-check the ingredients.
- Avoid adding starchy vegetables or strong-tasting vegetables to the stock as starchy vegetables will lead to a gummy broth and strong-tasting vegetables will overpower the broth.
- Feel free to use this homemade vegetable broth in place of any recipe calling for a vegetable broth.
- To store: Store the vegetable broth in the fridge for 5 days in an airtight container such as a mason jar.
- To freeze: Freeze vegetable broth for up to 6 months.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.
Samsundar Katwaru says
Your recipe are great and easy to follow.
Olivia says
Thank you so much 😉