Ever stared at a sad pile of veggie scraps and wondered if they were destined for greatness? Spoiler alert: they are!
Welcome to the magical world of homemade vegetable broth, where carrot peels and celery ends transform into flavorful liquid gold.
It’s the ultimate ADHD-friendly hack—just toss everything into a pot or your slow cooker, and boom—you’ve got broth simmering away while you accidentally get distracted playing games on Youtube (yes there are games on there).
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What Are Some Ways I Can Use This Stock?
Use it in all of your soups! Try using it in any of the following recipes:
- Delicious red lentil chili
- Instant pot vegan potato and meat stew.
- In creamy mushroom soup.
- Stuffed bell pepper soup.
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Recipe
Don’t Throw Out Those Veggie Scraps! Turn Them Into Homemade Vegetable Broth
Equipment
- 1 large stock pot
- 1 strainer or sieve
- 1 bowl
- storage containers or whatever you're using to store your broth.
Ingredients
- 1 gallon freezer bag full of veggie scraps I used a whole bag.
- 1 sheet kombu seaweed skip for salt-free
- 4+ cups water this will depend on how much broth you want.
Instructions
- Place a stock pot over high heat and add the water.4+ cups water
- Add in your frozen scraps and anything else you'd like and bring to a boil.1 gallon freezer bag full of veggie scraps, 1 sheet kombu seaweed
- Once at a boil, turn down to a low simmer and place a lid.
- Allow to simmer for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, turn off the heat and strain out the scraps and store the broth for use in the future.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Place frozen veggies into the instant pot, add water to fill line and place lid.1 gallon freezer bag full of veggie scraps, 4+ cups water
- Set the steam vent closed, set the IP to high pressure for 1 minute. You can quick release after it's finished or let it natural release.
- That's it! Continue as usual when straining and storing.
Notes
- You can go past the 1 hour mark, but after a while the broth will start to evaporate, so don't let it go for too long.
- You can skip the seaweed if you're not a fan of it.
- Add in your own seasonings and herbs if you'd like.
- Refrigerate up to 10 days in any container you have.
- Freeze up to 1 year in either a glass or plastic container, or freezer bag, depending on your freezer space.
- If you only have room for 4 cups of stock, only put in 4 cups of water.
Nutrition
Ingredients You Will Need
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
The seaweed is totally optional here. I like the added nutrients and umami flavor that seaweed gives to my broths and stocks.
You can use just about any veggie scraps, my scraps are frozen and usually consists of potato peels, carrot peels, celery leaves and ends, carrot ends and greens (if there are any), and mushroom stems.
Note: make sure your veggie scraps are clean and free of dirt. Typically before freezing.
Other vegetables you could use are: Onion peel scraps, garlic scraps, bell pepper stems/ends (you can add some of the seeds if you want a bit of spice, that's perfectly fine), any other veggies that need peeled, really. You can also use fresh vegetable scraps.
Other things you could add: Salt and pepper, tomato paste, nutritional yeast, and a little bit of sugar.
This broth is naturally gluten-free and oil-free so carefully consider any add-ons if you can't have either one of those things.
Other things you can do with this broth:
- Spicy - yep, some like it hot! You could definitely add some jalapeno scraps to this stock and get a nice spicy element for any recipes you want
- Add fresh herbs - things like thyme, rosemary and bay leaves are poplar add ins!
- Use whole veggies - While most vegetable stocks just use frozen or fresh scraps, some do contain a mixture of mire poix (carrots, celery and onion). This would need the use of oil.
- Other seasonings - miso paste would be an excellent add in for broth, it does add sodium, and you need to add it at the end when the broth is not boiling. Salt and pepper, sugar, nutritional yeast and any other seasoning you think would be good!
Please see recipe card above for exact measurements.
Step By Step Instructions
Step One - Add the water to a large stock/broth pot.
Step Two - Add in your veggie scraps and anything else you wish to add. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 1 hour.
Step Three - When your broth is ready, it is easiest to scoop the scraps out with a mesh strainer, then toward the bottom of the pot, set the strainer over a bowl and then lift the pot and pour over the strainer to get the remaining bits out.
Step Four - Pour your broth into your container. Because I am using an old oat milk carton, I am using a funnel here.
Important Tip About Cruciferous Veggies
Do not add cruciferous vegetables to your stock or broth. Things such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and brussels sprouts can potentially make your broth bitter.
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What Type Of Equipment Can I Use?
Making stock doesn't require a ton of utensils and cutting boards (unless you're making fresh broth with some fresh veggies, of course, but that's on you!).
- Stock Pot - This is the usual or traditional way to make a stock or broth.
- Instant Pot - If you need stock super fast, these fancy pressure cookers are the way to go. Instructions on how will be in the recipe card.
- Sieve or strainer - You will need to strain out the liquid from the scraps of course.
- Container to hold the stock - And of course, you will need to store your broth. I like reusing things and often end up using cleaned out old oat milk cartons to store mine, but if you're planning to freeze your broth, you'll need something more durable like glass or plastic.
- A bowl - to catch the liquid when you're straining of course.
- A funnel - This is optional.
How Can I Store This Broth For Later?
- Refrigerator - You can store your homemade broth in practically any container. I like to reuse a lot and often use containers that have previously housed something else, but you can use a glass or plastic container. Store for up to 10 days.
- Freezer - Depending on how much you're making, you may want to freeze a portion of your stock. The easiest way for me to store stock is in a freezer bag. But if you have a bigger, more modern freezer, you can store in plastic or glass containers. Can be stored for up to 1 year.
Frequently asked questions
Yes you can. Vegetable broth is commonly used for staying hydrated when dealing with an illness. Instead of just drinking water, broth not only keeps you hydrated but it also provides nutrients. So the next time you're not feeling well, try some warm, homemade veggie broth!
Typically, a broth is made from a protein (meat) and vegetables, while a stock is made from bones, seasoning, and water. They are similar and are often interchangeable and usable in the same types of dishes. Since we're making a vegetable broth, and this is a vegan website, no bones or animal proteins will be used.
What's up! My name is Bree, and I run this kitchen! I love sharing my recipes with you and I hope you enjoy them. You can follow me on Pinterest, or Get to know more about me and this site if you'd like. Thanks, bud!
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