Homemade Vegetable Broth
Ready in 45 minutes. Cooked longer, it does not get stronger, but bitter.
- Preparation
- 15 min
- Cook/bake time
- 45 min
- Total
- 1 hr
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 18 kcal
- Servings
- 8 servings
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cooking & baking
- 45 min
Ready in 45 minutes. Cooked longer, it does not get stronger, but bitter. Unlike meat broth, there is no connective tissue here that needs hours: vegetables have completely released their flavor after just under an hour. Everything after that is a loss.
Why this works
Vegetable broth has a problem that meat broth does not have: it lacks the gelatin that gives chicken broth its body. What it needs instead is glutamate, and that is found primarily in dried mushrooms, tomatoes, and roasted vegetables. That is why there are two dried porcini mushrooms on the list here, and that is why the onions are sautéed beforehand. The time limit is the second point: after about 45 minutes, the cell walls have released everything they have to give. Anyone who continues cooking only extracts bitter substances from cabbage and herb stems and concentrates them when boiling down.
Step-by-step instructions
- 1
Sauté the onions
Fry the halved onions cut side down in oil in a dry pot until they are clearly dark brown. This takes a good five minutes and can easily become almost black. In a vegetable broth, these roasted flavors are the replacement for everything a chicken would bring.
- 2
Add vegetables and pour in water
Add the roughly chopped vegetables, tomatoes, mushrooms, and spices and fry everything for two minutes. Then fill up with cold water. The skins stay on, as they contribute color and flavor. They just need to be washed.
- 3
Simmer for 45 minutes
Bring everything to a simmer once and then keep it uncovered over low heat for 45 minutes. Set a timer: after this time, the vegetables have released everything, and what comes next are bitter substances from celery and herb stems.
- 4
Strain and season
Pour the broth through a fine sieve and do not press the vegetables out while doing so. Only season with salt now, exactly how you want to drink it later. For canning as a pantry staple, it is better to leave it unsalted.
Our best tips
- No longer than 45 minutes. Vegetables release their flavor quickly and after that only bitter substances. Unlike a meat broth, it does not get better, but worse.
- Two dried porcini mushrooms are the most important single item. They bring the glutamate that a vegetable broth otherwise lacks, and they do not taste like mushrooms themselves.
- No cabbage, no potato. Cabbage vegetables become sulfurous, potato starch makes the broth cloudy and makes it spoil faster.
Tasty variations
Broth paste instead of liquid broth
Puree the strained vegetables with 100 g of salt and refrigerate in a jar. It lasts for months, and one teaspoon replaces a bouillon cube. This way, nothing is left over from cooking.
From vegetable peels
Collect onion skins, carrot ends, leek greens, and celery stalks in a freezer bag. When it is full, it yields two liters of broth for free. Only cabbage and potato peels do not belong in it.
Nutrition facts
| Calories | 18 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 1 g |
| Carbohydrates | 3 g |
| – of which sugar | 2 g |
| Fat | 0 g |
| Fiber | 0 g |
Estimated, not calculated – why
Here some of the ingredients never reach the plate: most frying oil stays in the pan, and in a stock the solids are strained off. How much of it ends up in the food cannot be calculated – counting a litre of oil would quintuple the figure, leaving it out would describe a dish baked without fat. So this is an editorial estimate rather than a total that would look dependable without being so.
A guide value, not a lab measurement: no two onions weigh the same, and fat content varies from pack to pack.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my vegetable broth taste so thin?
Usually, the roasted flavors and glutamate are missing. Brown onions, halved tomatoes, and two dried porcini mushrooms are the three ingredients that transform a thin broth into a strong one. Without them, it is just vegetable water.
Can I just use all vegetable scraps?
Almost all. Leave out cabbage vegetables of all kinds (they become sulfurous), potatoes and potato peels (they make the broth cloudy and shorten the shelf life), and beetroot (it colors everything). Everything else can go in, including stalks and ends.
How long does it keep?
Five days in the refrigerator, six months in the freezer. Frozen unsalted, it is more flexible because you can use it later both as a broth and as a cooking liquid for rice or risotto.
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