Week Thirty Three : Charred Leeks Soaked in Bone Broth

Ingredients

For the bone broth

Bones (venison, beef, chicken, or a mixture), which you should be able to get from any butcher!
Onions (skin on)
Celery
Carrot
Fresh ginger
Herbs (such as sage, bay leaf, thyme)
Salt & pepper
Any leftover vegetables like kale stems etc
Water
Honey
Dijon mustard

For the leeks

Leeks
Oil or ghee
Bone broth (or vegetable stock)
I wish I had eaten mine with some butter beans but will work on sourdough toast too !

Bone broth is amazing for our gut health incredibly comforting in winter and deeply supportive for our guts, rich in:

Collagen & gelatin, which support the gut lining, joints, skin and connective tissue
Amino acids important for digestion, repair and nervous system support
Minerals like calcium, magnesium and phosphorus

I’ve cooked mine in a pressure cooker and then frozen it, in portions, both can help keep histamine levels lower. Most people don’t need to worry about histamine but those who react to alcohol, fermented foods, or have allergies may be more sensitive.

Method

Bone Broth

Start by browning your bones in the pot you plan to make the broth in, this keeps all those deep, umami, savoury flavours.

You can use venison, beef, chicken or a mixture.

Add onions (chopped in half or chunks, peel off the very outer brown layer but keep the rest of the skin on for colour), celery, carrot, ginger, herbs, salt and pepper, plus any leftover veg you need to use up. Cover with water.

I cooked mine in my pressure cooker for 3½ hours on high pressure.

If you’re not using a pressure cooker, you can make bone broth by gently simmering:

Beef or venison bones: 12–24 hours
Chicken bones: 4–6 hours

Keep it at a low, steady simmer, never a rolling boil.

You have use straight away but once cooled and set in the fridge, skim off any excess fat from the top. If it sets like jelly, that’s a good sign, it means you’ve made a proper bone broth rich in collagen, not just a stock.

I like to enjoy a small cup daily, use it for cooking rice or quinoa instead of water or freeze it in large cubes to keep in the freezer.

The Leeks

Clean your leeks well.

Cut the white part into rounds around 1/2 inch high, and finely slice the green tops of 1–2 leeks.

Char the white leek rounds on both sides in a hot pan, ideally cast iron or an ovenproof frying pan. You want a strong char, but not completely burnt.

Pour in enough broth to come up around 1–2 cm + a little honey and Dijon mustard. Then transfer the pan to the oven and cook until the leeks are tender. This is where you could add in a few butter beans to cook in the same pan.