Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth is an incredibly easy and faster way to make nutrient-dense and collagen filled bone broth! This Instant Pot recipe for bone broth starts with a whole chicken which is cooked in the Instant Pot. Then, using the bones, carrots, onions, celery, herbs, and water, it is cooked in the Instant Pot for 2 hours for rich and nutrient-dense bone broth.
Chicken bone broth is basically a stock that is cooked for a very long time. It uses the bones, tendons, and skin of a chicken, along with a variety of veggies and herbs, to create a nutrient-dense and very flavorful broth. The broth is cooked for so long that the bones release collagen, giving the broth a gelatinous texture once cooled.
Bone broth is full of nutrients, collagen, and a bit of protein and is thought to have gut-healing properties. It is also incredibly flavorful and can add a lot of depth to any recipe that you use it in.
You can use it any way you would typically use chicken broth! I use it in multiple recipes a week but my favorite way is to drink it warm from a mug. I never thought I would like it but once I tried it, I was hooked!
Whenever I use my Instant Pot for a recipe, especially one that I share on this blog, I ask myself why should I use the Instant Pot for this recipe? Most of the time the answer is that it makes the recipe easier and faster, and this recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth is no exception.
To make bone broth on the stovetop would typically take all day and at least 24 hours in the slow cooker. The reason is so the bones are sufficiently simmered and drained of nutrients and flavor. So instead of taking hours upon hours, the Instant Pot allows us to make the bone broth in less than three.
Cook a Whole Chicken. To start off making the Instant Pot chicken bone broth, we need a chicken. I use a whole organic chicken, and simply cook it in my Instant Pot. This is a pretty simple process. You just place the trivet on the bottom of your Instant Pot, place 1 cup of water in the Instant Pot, and set your chicken on top of the trivet. I like to season my chicken with some poultry seasoning, sea salt, and pepper, and sometimes I'll throw in some onion and carrots for extra flavoring. I keep those veggies in the Instant Pot for the bone broth part, as well.
To cook the chicken in the Instant Pot, you seal the top and cook on high for 20-30 minutes. The amount of time your whole chicken needs is dependent on how large your chicken is, so reference below for the cooking time:
Separate the meat from the bones. Once the chicken is cooked, I like to let it cool on a plate for about 15 minutes so it's cool enough to touch and separate the meat from the bones. The meat is great to have on hand during the week for sandwiches, salads, or to throw into recipes for dinner! So I place the meat on one plate and then everything else goes into the Instant Pot - bones, tendons, skin, everything.
Add vegetables and herbs. Along with all of that I put in a handful of veggies and herbs. In the recipe below I have included my standard recipe, but don't be afraid to mix things up. I always keep a ziploc bag full of veggie scraps in our freezer and use those for my bone broth. This can be anything from onion ends, carrot peels, and kale stems, to potato peels, herbs that are on their last day, and bell pepper stems.
Add apple cider vinegar and water. The last few things I add are a splash of apple cider vinegar and cold water. Then I let it sit for about 15 minutes. Apparently this cold soak and acidity from the vinegar helps to draw out the minerals from the bones and breaks down the collagen.
Cook. The next thing there is to do is cook it! You'll seal the lid and cook on high for 2 hours. Let the pressure naturally release for about 15-20 minutes and then release completely. The only thing left to do is strain out the solids and bottle it up. I like to use large mason jars to keep it fresh in the refrigerator and I'll also put some in an ice cube tray to save it longer.
And that's it! We made Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth! I hope you love it as much as I do. It's safe to say I'm addicted to making my own bone broth now - once you do it, you won't go back!
Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup