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Easy Homemade
Broth for Better Health, Better Taste
by Dana Jacobi
for The American Institute for Cancer Research |
Football season
is about to reach its peak of holiday madness. If this sports
obsession leaves you cold, spend some quality time in the kitchen
instead. While the tv blares, make an old-fashioned, rich broth
to freeze and use whenever a dish requires broth or a recipe
calls for “stock.” The process will create some cozy
aromas and a sense of well-being, and the result will improve
your cooking for weeks to come.
Not worth the
time and effort, you say? Read labels, I say. The best tasting
ready-to-use vegetable broths contain up to 980 mg. of sodium
per cup, from MSG and other additives. More healthful commercial
versions taste bland or muddy.
Many commercial
broths list carrots high on the list of ingredients. They look
orange, not a good thing when making broccoli or split green
pea soup. Most have a bitter aftertaste that affects most dishes.
(We think of carrots as sweet-tasting because their sugar hits
our tastebuds first, but chew a raw carrot and you will notice
its bitter finish.)
A while back,
I was so frustrated by the available choices that I helped a
food company develop what I thought was a great vegetable broth.
We succeeded admirably, but then the company was sold and the
product discontinued. So once a month, I make a big pot of vegetable
broth, or stock. Most of its ingredients come from the freezer,
where I stockpile leftover vegetables, like the ends from sliced
zucchini, the dark green tops of leeks, mushroom stems and potato
peelings.
One secret
for great vegetable broth is moderation, especially with strong-tasting
vegetables like cabbage. Another is to add celery root, which
looks like a dirty, knobby turnip but adds a pleasant sweetness.
My personal secrets are to always use tomatoes and never include
garlic. The acid of tomatoes balances the slight sweetness of
the vegetables in the stock. Over time, garlic tastes funky,
and its strong flavor makes the broth less versatile.
Freeze the strained broth in quarter-, half- and one-cup portions,
to use when cooking vegetables as well as when making soups,
stews, or other dishes. It adds flavor that makes getting to
the goal of “5-a-day” more deliciously easy.
Vegetable
Broth - Makes
2 1/2 quarts.
4 medium carrots,
sliced
2 cups chopped green cabbage
4 white mushrooms, quartered
1 medium leek, white part only, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
Peel of 1 potato
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1/4 lb. string beans, cut in 1-inch pieces
1/2 small celery root, chopped (1 cup)
15 sprigs flat-leaf parsley sprigs
12 black peppercorns
3 quarts cold water
2 cups canned tomatoes, with liquid
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
In a large
pot (4-quart or larger), place all the ingredients except tomatoes,
bay leaf and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30
minutes. Add tomatoes, bay leaf and thyme. Simmer 30 minutes.
Let sit until cool.
Strain broth
into a large bowl or pot, gently pressing solids to extract their
flavorful juices. Refrigerate broth up to 3 days, or freeze in
small containers.
Per 8-oz.
cup:
56 calories, 0 g. total fat (0 g. saturated fat), 13 g. carbohydrate,
2 g. protein, 1 g. dietary fiber, 150 mg. sodium.
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AUTHOR: |
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“Something
Different”
is written for the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR)
by Dana Jacobi, author of The Joy of Soy, and recipe creator
for AICR’s Stopping Cancer Before It Starts.
AICR offers
a Nutrition Hotline (1-800-843-8114) 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Monday-Friday.
This free service allows you to ask a registered dietitian questions
about diet, nutrition and cancer. AICR is the only major cancer
charity focused exclusively on the link between diet, nutrition
and cancer. It provides a range of education programs that help
Americans learn to make changes for lower cancer risk. AICR also
supports innovative research in cancer prevention and treatment
at universities, hospitals and research centers across the U.S.
It has provided more than $65 million for research in diet, nutrition
and cancer. AICR’s Web address is www.aicr.org. AICR is a member
of the World Cancer Research Fund International. |
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RECIPE POSTED
2002 |
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