How to Make Homemade Chicken Broth with Raw Chicken Pieces

A homemade chicken broth that uses raw chicken pieces instead of a cooked chicken carcass.

chicken pieces with veggies and herbs in large pot with water
Raw chicken pieces and veggies make an amazing broth.

Also Read: Homemade Vegetable Soup Stock, What You Need to Know When Making Soup, How to Make Stock from Cooked ChickenHow to Make Ham Bone Stock

You can make this broth in under two hours by browning the meat and sweating the veggies before you add water. Or, you can use a more leisurely approach and toss all the raw ingredients in a pot or slow cooker and let it simmer for 3 to 12 hours.

If you have a chicken carcass or trimmed bones, check out my recipe for Homemade Chicken Stock instead.

Continue reading after the recipe for comments on the difference between stock and broth and how to get more flavorful broth or stock.

jar full of soup stock
Strain well and skim off fat before using, storing or freezing.

Recipe for Chicken Broth from Raw Chicken Pieces

raw chicken pieces with vegetables and herbs in large soup pot with water
Print Recipe
4 from 7 votes

Chicken Broth from Raw Chicken Pieces

A tasty chicken broth made with raw chicken pieces. Browning and cooking the chicken and veggies helps develop a flavorful broth quickly. If you prefer to skip this step, simmer all ingredients in a pot for 3-4 hours. For even easier prep, place everything in a slow cooker and cook on low for up to 8-12 hours.
Prep : 15 minutes
Cook : 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 8 cups
Author: Getty Stewart

Ingredients

  • 4 lbs chicken leg quarters backs or wings
  • 1 Tbsp canola oil
  • 1 medium onion cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 1 carrot cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 2 celery ribs cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 5 whole black peppercorns
  • 2 bay leaves whole
  • 8 cups cold water

Instructions

  • Chop chicken into 2 inch pieces. Use a cleaver to chop through bone, not your favorite knife!
  • In a large, heavy pot, heat canola oil over medium high heat. Chopping the bones allows more flavor, nutrients and collagen to be drawn out.
  • Add chicken pieces to cover bottom and lightly brown on all sides about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove finished pieces and repeat in several batches. Remove all chicken pieces from pan.
  • Add chopped onions, carrots and celery. Cook until onions are translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
  • Return chicken pieces to pot, cover and cook on low heat for 20 minutes.
  • Add salt, pepper, bay leaves and cold water. Bring to boil then reduce heat to low, cover with lid partially askew and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until broth is rich and flavorful.
  • Remove from heat and strain through fine mesh sieve.
  • When cool, remove meat from bones to use in various recipes. Discard bones and cooked veggies.
  • If using right away, let broth cool for 5 to 10 minutes then skim off any foam and fat.
  • If saving, cool quickly with ice wand, cold water bath or by separating into smaller containers.
  • Once cool, cover and place in fridge overnight. Remove layer of fat before using.
  • Store finished broth in fridge for up to 4 days or freeze in convenient sizes for up to 6 months.
  • Makes: ~ 8 cups broth

Notes

Don’t want to brown chicken and sweat veggies? No problem. Just toss all ingredients into a large pot and simmer for 3-4 hours or use a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 to 12 hours.
Nutrient content will change somewhat depending on ingredients used. 
Tried this recipe?Mention @GetGettyS or tag #GetGettyS

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

Calories: 21kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 57mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Iron: 1mg
Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chicken broth, soup broth, soup stock

Difference Between Chicken Broth and Chicken Stock

I am not one to get hung up on words and will often use the term broth and stock interchangeably. However, when teaching how to make soup courses, I’m often asked “What’s the difference between broth and stock?”

Really, the difference is minute and does not matter for most home cooks. It’s okay to use broth and stock interchangeably.

Both are water simmered with herbs, spices, veggies and bones with meat (unless of course it’s veggie or fish based). It is the amount of meat and bones that distinguishes broth and stock. Generally speaking, broth is made with more meat than bones while stock is made with more bones than meat.

browned chicken
More meat than bones in this broth.

So if you’re using something like a chicken carcass and some bones that have been trimmed of their meat – you’re making stock. If you’re using pieces of meat with the bone attached, like in this recipe – you’re making broth.

But what is Bone Broth? Not to burst any bubbles, but bone broth is really just a trendy name for stock. Confusing, I know. But a recipe that features mostly bones simmered in water is stock, even if the bones are blanched, roasted and simmered for 20 hours – it’s still stock!

Getting More Flavorful Broth or Stock

Another common question is how to get more flavorful broth or stock. Here are a few ideas:

  • Don’t skimp on bones, meat and aromatics.  One deli counter chicken carcass is only enough to flavor about 2 cups of water. Either store it in the freezer until you’ve collected a few or add some raw pieces of meat to your stock making (eg. wings, legs, thighs, etc).
  • Start with a good ratio of water to flavor ingredients. Place all of your veggies, bones, and herbs in a pot and cover with just enough cold water to cover by no more than 2 cm or just under an inch.
  • Chop bones to release more flavor, nutrients and collagen (which turns into gelatin).
  • Roast bones to add flavor and deepen the color of stock.
  • Use boney pieces of meat (wings, thighs, legs, backs, etc.) in addition to leftover cooked carcasses.

And, to get more gelatin forming, simmer for long time, add more connective tissue (joints, tendons, feet, etc.).

cut up bones for broth
The crock pot ensures a nice long, slow simmer for nice clear broth.

More Recipes

Now that you have some delicious broth, try some of these recipes!

I’d love to hear your comment or see your results when you try this recipe. Please leave a comment or take a photo and tag #getgettys so I can see it and like it!

Sign up to get articles by Getty delivered to your inbox. You’ll get recipes, practical tips and great food information like this. Getty is a Professional Home Economist,  speaker and writer putting good food on tables and agendas.  She is the author of Manitoba’s best-selling Prairie Fruit Cookbook, Founder of Fruit Share, a mom and veggie gardener.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.