Chicken Feet Bone Broth Stock {Stove Top or Instant Pot}
Easily make the most gelatinous and nourishing chicken feet bone broth on your stove or in your Instant Pot. This delicious stock can be sipped on its own or used to make soups, stews, and sauces.
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Are Chicken Feet Good For Bone Broth?
The part of the chicken with the most collagen is its feet!
Chicken feet are about 70% collagen, making them a veritable treasure trove of this essential protein. Comprising bones, skin, and tendons, chicken feet hold no muscles but are rich in protein, calcium, collagen, and cartilage.
Chicken Feet Bone Broth Benefits
Chicken feet are prized in many culinary traditions for their collagen-rich skin and connective tissues, contributing to a rich and gelatinous broth.
They enrich soups, stews, sauces, and braises, adding a distinctive depth of flavor and satisfying mouthfeel to your meals.
You can sip your broth straight from a mug too.
Perfect for bedtime and cold days outside.
I’ll show you how easy it is to make this nourishing broth on your stove or pressure cooker.
Equipment
- A large stock or soup pot OR
- A pressure cooker (like the Instant Pot,) if you’re making that version.
Ingredients
Simple ingredients and easy substitutions/additions depending on what you have on hand and what your personal preferences are.
- Chicken Feet | scrubbed clean (see notes below)
- Onions | cut in half or quartered, skin can be left on
- Carrots | scrubbed clean and halved, you do not need to peel your carrots
- Celery | if you have lovage, use that instead
- Garlic | Smashed, peeling not necessary
- Peppercorns | whole peppercorns
- Bay Leaf
- Herbs and optional extras | lovage (my favorite), Vegeta, thyme, parsley, etc.
❁ You’ll find the exact amount of each ingredient below in the recipe card. Make sure to select ‘cook mode’ to keep your screen from turning off as you make it. You can also print the recipe.
Do I Have To Peel Chicken Feet For Bone Broth?
No, you don’t have to peel chicken feet for bone broth. The skin and outer layer of chicken feet can add flavor and nutrients to your broth. You also don’t have to clip the nails off either. Just make sure to clean them thoroughly before adding them to your broth, and you’ll get the most out of their flavor and nutritional benefits.
Preparing Chicken Feet For Cooking
Some cooks will thoroughly scrub the feet and then soak them in salted water and vinegar overnight in the refrigerator. Give them an additional scrubbing and rinsing right before cooking.
Others will boil them quickly for 5 minutes in salted water and vinegar before discarding the water and then starting the broth.
I like to scrub the feet and boil them before giving a final rinse and then proceeding with the broth. I don’t usually bother with peeling the skin or clipping the nails.
To Roast Or Not To Roast
My favorite way to make this stock is to throw all the ingredients, minus any herbs and spices, onto a baking sheet and throw everything into an oven for 1 hour at 350 °F.
This results in an intensely flavored and rich stock that is especially great for simple soup recipes where the broth is the main star, sipping bone broth recipes, as well as sauces and gravies.
That said — not roasting is equally good, just different. The broth will be lighter but still very flavorful. It is less useful for sauces and gravies where you want a more intense flavor.
Try both ways and see what you prefer.
Instructions (Stove-Top)
Step 1: Scrub the chicken feet thoroughly. Make sure they are clean and free from debris and dirt.
Optional: Place all ingredients, minus herbs and spices, onto a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 1 hour at 350 °F before proceeding.
Step 2: Take your vegetables, bay leaf, peppercorns, and any veggie scraps you’re using and add them into the pot with your chicken feet (see notes).
Cover with water by a few inches.
Sep 3: Bring the water to a rolling boil, but do not let the water boil for a long time — lower it to a simmer immediately, or you will get a cloudy white broth.
Add herbs towards the end of cooking (depending on the herbs you’re using, see notes) and then allow the broth to cool before storing.
Hint: Pressure cooker instructions are located below in the recipe card.
Storage, Freezing, & Reheating
Chicken feet bone broth will stay fresh for up to 5 days, covered, in the refrigerator.
To reheat broth: ladle your desired portion into a pot and heat it on medium-low until it reaches the desired temperature.
To freeze broth: for long-term freezer storage, you should cook down your broth until it is concentrated and a lot of the water has evaporated.
Ladle broth into ice-cube trays, plastic freezer-safe heavy-duty bags, silicone bags, or silicone souper cube trays (my favorite, they’re amazing). If using plastic, let the sup come down to room temperature first.
Soups and stews can be popped out of the Souper Cubes once frozen and stacked neatly in your freezer for better organization.
How To Use Chicken Feet Bone Broth
- In any soup or stew that uses bone broth or stock (see below for recipes).
- This broth will add extra nourishment to any soup or stew that uses water.
- Cook rice in chicken feet stock instead of water.
- Add it to gravies and sauces.
- Braise kale, green beans, and many other vegetables.
FAQ
Yes, you make canned chicken feet bone broth in a pressure canner for long-term preservation and storage at room temperature. Pressure canning is an excellent method for preserving homemade broth safely. It is NOT safe to water bath can chicken broth.
For processing, maintain 10 pounds of pressure for 20-25 minutes (adjust for altitude) if using pint-sized jars or 25-30 minutes for quart-sized ones. Once processing is complete, turn off the heat and allow the pressure to naturally release. Wait until the pressure gauge indicates zero pressure before opening the canner safely. Carefully remove the jars, ensuring not to tilt them excessively. As they cool, listen for the satisfying “pop” sound of the lids sealing properly. After cooling, check the seals; lids should be concave and not flex when pressed.
Yes, you can reuse chicken feet to make a double batch of bone broth. When reusing them, consider adding more fresh aromatics like onions, carrots, and celery to enhance the flavor, as the chicken feet will have already released a significant amount of their nutrients and flavor into the first batch. Adding extra onions is key. I recommend cooking down the liquid even more to concentrate flavor. This is a thrifty way to maximize the use of your ingredients and get a second batch of flavorful bone broth.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken feet scrubbed clean
- 1 Large Onion cut in half, skin-on
- 2 Large Carrots cut in half, sctubbed clean, skin-on
- 2 Ribs Celery cut in half
- 3 Cloves Fresh Garlic crushed
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 1 Tablespoon Whole Peppercorns
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Stove Top Instructions
- Clean the chicken feet very thoroughly under cool water. They do not have to be peeled, but they must be thoroughly scrubbed.
- Optional: Place cleaned chicken feet and all other ingredients, minus herbs and spices, onto a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 1 hour at 350 °F before proceeding.
- Combine all the ingredients except for any herbs in a Dutch oven and cover with water.
- Heat to boiling, immediately reduce heat to the lowest setting, cover and simmer on low for 4 hours.
- Add herbs (if using) and simmer gently for an additional 30 minutes.
- Strain and discard all the solids.
- If you desire, continue simmering the broth until the liquid has evaporated by half or two thirds. Freeze this concentrated broth and add more water when using to make soups and stews.
Instant Pot Instructions
- To make chicken feet bone broth in an Instant Pot, begin by cleaning 2-3 pounds of chicken feet and placing them in the Instant Pot along with onion, carrots, celery, smashed garlic cloves, bay leaves, and a pinch of salt. Add enough water to cover the ingredients without exceeding the "Max" line. Seal the Instant Pot, set it to the "Pressure Cook" or "Manual" setting, and cook for 2 hours for a flavorful broth. After a natural pressure release of at least 30 minutes, strain the broth, discard solids, and store or use it as desired. Always follow your Instant Pot's safety guidelines for pressure cooking functions. Enjoy your homemade chicken feet bone broth!
