Forget store-bought; the best vegetable broth is homemade! This homemade veggie broth is infused with tons of savoury & rich veggie flavour. It adds so much oomph to all your homemade soups, stews, sauces, and more!
Hi friends!
Sharing a pretty simple recipe today that could be the base of so many delicious eats.
I use vegetable broth on the regular, so I figured I’d make my own.
I’ve been wanting to sharing this broth recipe with you all forever!
This homemade veg broth, gets rich colour and flavour from tomato paste and (one of my fave ingredients for broth) dried mushrooms.
It’s seriously good, like drink a hot-cup-of-it good, especially after coming in from outside on a cold day. So relishing!
Veggie Broth Ingredients
- Oil, to get things going
- Veggies, like leek, onion, celery, carrot, parsnip, and baby spinach
- Aromatics and fresh herbs, like garlic, bay leaves, parsley, thyme, and rosemary
- Flavour boosters, like dried mushrooms, tomato paste, fresh chili pepper, and black peppercorns
- Water
How to Make Vegetable Broth
Full details on how to make this homemade vegetable broth are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
- Heat some olive oil in a large pot. Then, add leek, onion, garlic, chili, celery, carrot, parsnip, and dried mushrooms. Cook for a little.
- Stir in tomato paste.
- Add bay leaves, spinach, parsley, thyme, rosemary, peppercorns, and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer (medium-low heat) and cover with lid ajar.
- After an hour, carefully remove cover and you have one beautiful sight!
- Strain veggies through a fine mesh sieve, pressing down to get every last bit of goodness. I like to strain the broth twice to ensure everything is removed. Note: the veggies are not going through the sieve, we’re just using the sieve get all the flavour from the veggies.
- Allow to cool slightly and portion broth into jars. There ya have it, yummy no salt added vegetable broth!
What’s the Difference Between Stock and Broth?
Stock and broth are very often used interchangeably.
However, there are some differences.
Stock is typically made from bones and has a more neutral flavour than broth. Because of the release of collagen/fat and longer cook time, stock has a thicker consistency than broth.
Broth, on the other hand, is usually made from veggies and/or meat and herbs. It’s seasoned and its consistency is typically thinner than stock (because of a shorter cook time).
When it comes to a veggie-based broth or stock, people often use “vegetable broth” and “vegetable stock” reciprocally (and, of course, there are no bones in veggie broth).
To Peel or Not to Peel
Peeling the veggies is a matter of personal preference and how fresh those veggies are.
You can scrub them clean and not peel, should you wish.
For me, I often prefer to peel.
Can I Make Broth from Veggie Scraps?
Absolutely! If you’ve saved veggie scraps (peels and the like from things like carrot and parsnip), use those too. Just ensure they’re clean and free from any odd or spoiled bits (don’t use those).
How to Use Vegetable Broth
- Soups, like this celery root soup, vegetable rice soup
- Stews, like this veggie stew
- Gravy and sauces
- As the liquid base for cooking things like rice and quinoa
- In stuffing
- For sipping in a mug (so good on a cold day!)
Tips and Variations
- Use a large pot. There’s a lot going on here. Ensure that it’s deep enough to hold all the liquid and veg.
- Use organic veggies where you can.
- Don’t worry if you don’t have the exact quantity of certain veggies. If you only have two carrots, for example, don’t sweat it!
- Tomato paste and dried mushrooms give this veg broth a rich colour. If you omit those, the colour will be less intense or clearer.
- When simmering your veggie broth, you don’t want a raging boil, a medium-low to medium simmer is best.
- A chili pepper was used and a bunch of black peppercorns. The broth does have a little spice. If you want to omit (or reduce), feel free to do so.
- Use kale instead of baby spinach, if you like.
If you make this homemade vegetable broth recipe, be sure to leave a comment below!
Veggie Broth Recipe (rich and flavourful!)
Ingredients
- 1.5 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 leek, sliced (see "Notes" below)
- 2 yellow onions, cut into quarters (peel, but leave root intact)
- 5 cloves garlic, smashed (leave peels)
- 1 red Thai chili pepper, sliced lengthwise (optional)
- 4 ribs celery, cut into 1 to 1.5-inch chunks (plus a few celery leaves, leaves optional)
- 3 carrots, peeled, if necessary, and cut into 1 to 1.5-inch chunks
- 3 parsnips, peeled, if necessary, and cut into 1 to 1.5-inch chunks
- 1 cup dried mushrooms, about 1 ounce or 31 grams (see "Notes" below, point "4")
- 3 tablespoons no salt added tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 handfuls baby spinach
- 1 small handful fresh parsley
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 to 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 to 1.5 teaspoons black peppercorn
- 10 cups fresh, cold water
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.
- Add leek, onion, garlic, chili pepper, celery, carrots, parsnips and dried mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until veggies have softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 to 2 minutes.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat (to about medium-low heat) to a simmer. Cover ajar and cook 1 hour (up to 1.5 hours for a more intense flavour).
- Strain with a sieve (pressing down on the veggies with a spoon to extract all that goodness). Use immediately in your favourite soups, stews, sauces, etc., or allow to cool slightly before portioning into jars. Properly store and refrigerate leftovers and use within 3 to 5 days or freeze for up to 6 months.Recipe yields about 8 cups. Quantity could vary, depending on how long your simmer your broth and the simmer level.Note: No salt was added to this recipe. The broth recipe will likely be the base of other recipes (like soup, for example) where you will be adding salt. Having said that, you can add salt to taste should you wish.
Notes
- Use a large pot. There’s a lot going on here. Ensure that it’s deep enough to hold all the liquid and veg.
- Use organic veggies where you can.
- Don’t worry if you don’t have the exact quantity of certain veggies. If you only have 2 carrots, for example, don’t sweat it!
- Tomato paste and dried mushrooms give this veg broth a rich colour. If you omit those, the colour will be less intense or clearer.
- When simmering your broth, you don’t want a raging boil, a medium-low to medium simmer is best.
- A chili pepper was used and a bunch of black peppercorns. The broth does have a little spice. If you want to omit (or reduce), feel free to do so.
- Use kale instead of baby spinach, if you like.
Nutrition estimate (if provided) is based on 1 Serving.
Nutrition information (if provided) is provided as a courtesy and should be considered an estimate only. Ingredients can vary and Girl Heart Food makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are guidelines only.
