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This homemade chicken broth is an easy recipe that will make your meals healthier and tastier. You need to try it!

I'm going step by step to show you how you can make your homemade chicken broth with simple ingredients and store it for future use.

Three mason jars filled with homemade chicken broth

Easy Chicken Broth

Today we're making the homemade version of one of the most beloved pantry staples: chicken broth! Chicken broth is one of the most widely used ingredients for many recipes such as soups, stews, pasta, and rice dishes.

While store-bought broth is convenient, nothing beats the taste of homemade broth. You'll also have the advantage of controlling how much salt goes into the recipe. Store-bought chicken broth is renowned for its sodium content and additives, which is why homemade will win every time.

Ingredients

Any skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces, or even a rotisserie chicken, work for this recipe. For extra flavor, I add celery, carrots, onion, dried rosemary, thyme, peppercorn, and, optionally, bay leaves. To turn them all into a broth, you’ll need cold water.

Can you make chicken broth from a rotisserie chicken?

If you’re reading this and have a half-eaten rotisserie chicken in the fridge, by all means, use that instead. Simply prepare the broth with a chicken carcass, veggies, seasonings, and water. Cook for 4 to 6 hours. Instead of broth, it will be stock but still full of flavor and ready to use in any recipe that calls for broth.

overhead view of ingredients for homemade chicken broth. Chicken thighs and legs, carrot sticks, celery sticks, bay leaves, an onion and spices.

Difference Between Chicken Broth & Stock

Chicken stock's main ingredient is the bone, it’s thick due to the collagen released from the bones, and it’s generally unseasoned and cooked for 6 hours. Chicken broth is made with bones AND meat- the big difference. Unlike stock, broth is simmered meat, vegetables, and seasonings for less time, yielding a smooth and light cooking liquid.

How to Make Chicken Broth

As I’ll show you in the video below, there's nothing fancy about making homemade chicken broth:

Combine chicken, veggies, seasonings, and water in a large soup pot.
Simmer for 3 to 4 hours, occasionally skimming off any foam that comes to the surface.
Remove the chicken pieces and vegetables once the broth is slightly thickened and golden color.
Strain the broth into large broth jars, using a fine-mesh strainer. Allow to cool down to room temperature before sealing and storing.

How Long to Cook Chicken Broth

A good rule of thumb is 3 to 4 hours; by this time, the broth will be full-flavored, the veggies will be super tender, so you can toss them or blend them into a pureed tomato soup, and the chicken will be perfectly cooked for a recipe like my favorite Southern chicken salad.

on the left: using a slotted spoon to pull out chicken thighs from stock pot, on the right:
homemade chicken broth step three straining broth into broth jars.

How to Store Homemade Chicken Broth

Allow the chicken broth to cool down at room temperature before storing in lidded jars or airtight containers for up to a week in the fridge. To freeze it, use a freezer-safe container or a heavy-duty zip bag, making sure not to overfill them, as liquids expand when frozen. Store it in your freezer for up to 3 months.

Laura’s tip: When freezing broth in zip bags, I recommend placing them flat on a baking sheet, so once the broth is frozen, you can stack them on the freezer, saving a lot of room.

Three full mason jars of homemade chicken broth

Recipes Using Chicken Broth

Some of my favorite chicken dinner ideas with broth are paleo chicken and veggie chili, this easy chicken stew, and my Chicken with Prunes and Sage Recipe. Of course, this homemade pho and this rotisserie chicken noodle soup also taste like a million bucks when you make them with this chicken broth.

How to Make Chicken Broth

Servings: 6 cups

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 4

Total Time: 4 5

This homemade chicken broth is an easy recipe that will make your meals healthier and tastier. You need to try it!

5 from 16 votes

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Watch how it’s made:

Ingredients

2 ½ lbs skin-on bone-in chicken pieces, (legs quarters, breasts, wings)
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, quartered
1 large yellow onion, quartered
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon dried thyme
8 to 10 peppercorns
12 cups cold water

Instructions

Simmer:

Place all the ingredients in a large soup pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer for 3 to 4 hours, occasionally skimming off any foam that comes to the surface.