Winters are setting in and the best way to deal with the nippy weather is to sip on some piping hot soups and broths to warm you up from within. The cold weather offers a lot of colourful and tasty vegetables like carrots and dark leafy greens that add extra flavour to your soups and broths. A flavourful broth is made with water and vegetables along with mild spices simmered in it. A rich broth when made correctly makes for a delicious concoction and the best part is that you can use a mix of vegetables that suit your taste palate. A vegetable broth is not only full of flavours, but is also a powerhouse of nutrients. It can be used in the preparation of various soups, gravies, risottos and stews. We have a the best recipe for you to try at home along with tips to make a perfect broth. Important points to remember to make a vegetable brothHere are some important and handy tips shared by Culinary Expert and Food Blogger, Chef Reetu Uday Kugaji to keep in mind while making vegetable broth at home.
1. If you want to prepare gluten-free broth then skip the soy sauce and add tamari, which is a type of soy sauce that is made without wheat.
2. You can skip both soy sauce and tamari and add red wine, or omit all the three depending on what kind of flavours you desire.
3. You can reserve the cooked vegetables after straining the broth for using it to thicken gravy. Discard the bay leaves and whole spices.
4. You can freeze vegetable stems, onion ends and celery stems when you need to prepare vegetable broth may be in a day or too. This will help you to use the leftover vegetables to prepare the broth and avoid wastage.
5. Broth which is prepared and stored properly in a glass container and refrigerated, can be used for up to four days and for about two months when frozen.
6. For absolutely clear broth you should strain the liquid through a clean muslin cloth.
If you want to prepare gluten-free broth then skip the soy sauce and add tamariPreparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 to 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 4 cupsIngredients:
- One onion, cut into chunks
- One fourth cup of fresh chives, roughly chopped-
- Two celery stems
- 6 Fresh parsley sprigs
- Fresh dill sprigs- 2 nos.
- Two leeks, trimmed and cut into large chunks
- One carrot medium sized, cut into large chunks
- Half cup mushrooms cut into 4 pieces each
- 4 Cloves of garlic, whole
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 Thyme leaves, fresh
- One fourth tablespoon soy sauce (optional)
- 10 Cups of water
- Salt, coarse- to taste
- 8 Black peppercorns
A vegetable broth is not only full of flavours, but is also a powerhouse of nutrients2. Place all the ingredients mentioned in the list from Onion to thyme leaves in a large pot / stock pot along with water and bring it to a boil.
3. Reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer it for 1 hour.
4. After an hour, add the soy sauce and the seasonings and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes, when the vegetables are completely cooked, strain it through a fine mesh soup strainer.
5. Use as required. So, go ahead make some comforting vegetable broth for yourself and enjoy and soak in all the goodness from it.