Easy Vegetable Broth Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What not to put in vegetable broth? ›

INGREDIENTS TO AVOID IN HOMEMADE VEGETABLE BROTH

This includes: “Flavorless” Vegetables – like zucchini or white potatoes; these aren't going to do anything bad to the broth, but they're not going to help it either. Cruciferous Vegetables – such as broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and cabbage.

Boost the Umami of Vegetable Broth

Anchovy paste is a quick fix to reach umami bliss, but there are plenty of vegetarian ways to get there, too. Soy sauce, tamari, or liquid aminos add great depth, but watch out for using too much—you'll end up making the stock only taste like super-salty soy.

Ingredients for Vegetable Broth

Celery, carrots, leek, and onion form the aromatic base of this vegetable stock, and dried mushrooms are the powerhouse ingredient, providing savoriness, richness, and color.

Making vegetable stock costs virtually nothing.

You're using ingredients that you already have in the fridge, so, really, it just costs a little bit of your time to make a flavorful stock.

Foods in the Brassica family, such as collards, are too strong for stock/broth and can impart a bitter taste. Corn doesn't add a lot of flavor and can make the stock/broth cloudy. Excellent for making stock/broth. Avoid bitter greens and members of the brassica family (kale, cabbage, Bok Choy).

Vegetables to Avoid When Making Vegetables Stock

Starchy vegetables like potatoes and turnips will make for a gummy, cloudy vegetable stock. Beets overpower their aromatic counterparts. Zucchini and greens beans become bitter when slowly simmered for as long it takes to make this stock.

Some vegetables just don't taste great in a stock! Cruciferous vegetables will get funky tasting, and seemingly mild vegetables like zucchini, green beans, and bell peppers can get bitter if simmered for too long.

How do you fix bitter vegetable broth? Add sweet vegetables like carrots and beets. They will sweeten the broth and deepen its color. You might also add a bit of miso (or salt) and/or a squeeze of lemon juice.

Homemade Vegetable Broth Nutrition

These benefits are mainly derived from a freshly prepared broth vs. store-bought broths: Homemade vegetable broth is a fantastic source of fiber and a great way to help manage our digestive system.

What is the difference between vegetable broth and vegetable stock? ›

Vegetable stock likely comes unseasoned, while broth usually contains salt and other seasonings. Vegetable stock is made with untrimmed, sometimes whole vegetables, while broth is made from trimmed, roughly chopped vegetables.

But if you keep an eye on sodium levels, both broth and stock can be healthy. Taub-Dix notes that stock is often considered healthier than broth since it tends to be slightly higher in protein and other nutrients, including vitamins and minerals, than broth.

Once the broth is cool, you can store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. To store for a longer period of time, you'll need to freeze the broth.

“Vegetable broth works at multiple levels- it's a healing food, makes the dish alkaline [which helps protect healthy cells and balance essential mineral levels], adds additional multiple nutrients, plus you can customise it according to your needs,” says Delhi-based Kavita Devgan, a popular nutritionist and author.

Cooked vegetable broth typically lasts around 4-5 days in the refrigerator when stored properly in an airtight container. As for its uses, vegetable broth can be incredibly versatile! You can use it as a base for various soups like hot vegetable soup, minestrone, or noodle soups.

Consider adding other vegetables and herbs to the stock, like mushrooms, eggplant, asparagus trimmings, corn cobs, fennel stalks and trimmings, bell peppers, pea pods, chard stems and leaves, celery root trimmings, potato parings, marjoram stems and leaves, and basil stems and leaves.

Sorrel, lovage, bay leaves, chervil, marjoram, rosemary, tarragon and fenugreek as well as cardamom, ginger, pepper, paprika, agrimony and thyme tend to introduce a bitter taste. And it could also be a timing issue, when adding certain herbs too soon.

Save those scraps.

Omit scraps from cabbage-y veggies (aka cruciferous vegetables), but feel free to add squash and potato skins to the mix. Even scraps from veggies you usually eat raw, like lettuce or cucumber, can add body to a scrap broth.