Have you ever stared at a cup of chicken bone broth wondering if you should take the plunge? Maybe you’ve heard about all those amazing health benefits but you’re hesitating because you’re not sure if your taste buds will thank you or revolt. I totally get it! The first time I tried bone broth, I was expecting something like the comforting chicken soup my grandma used to make. Boy, was I surprised!
Let me walk you through exactly what chicken bone broth tastes like, how to make it more enjoyable if you’re new to it, and why it might be worth developing a taste for this nutrient-packed liquid
The Real Flavor of Chicken Bone Broth
Chicken bone broth has a savory, rich, and slightly meaty flavor with a distinct umami taste. It’s important to understand that bone broth is NOT the same as regular chicken soup broth or stock that you might be familiar with
Here are the key differences:
- Soup broth is often very flavorful and salty, while bone broth tends to be more bland and less salty
- Soup broth is a thin liquid, whereas bone broth has an oily texture and feels thicker in the mouth
- Bone broth has a full-bodied mouthfeel and deep golden color
- When cooled, bone broth becomes jelly-like due to its high collagen content
My first thought when trying bone broth was, “It feels like I’m drinking melted coconut oil with a very watered-down soup taste.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement, right? But I promise, it gets better!
The Unique Texture Experience
One of the most distinctive characteristics of chicken bone broth is its texture. The extended simmering process (usually 12-24 hours) breaks down collagen from the bones and connective tissues into gelatin, giving the broth a:
- Smooth, velvety mouthfeel
- Gelatinous texture when cooled
- Slightly oily sensation on the palate
This texture can be jarring for first-time drinkers. Some people struggle with the bland taste, while others find the oily mouthfeel unexpected. It’s important to reset your expectations – bone broth isn’t soup stock, and understanding this can help you appreciate it for what it is.
Is Chicken Bone Broth Strongly Flavored?
While chicken bone broth does have a distinct chicken flavor, it’s not overpowering. The taste is mildly intense with a balanced, well-rounded flavor profile. The slow simmering extracts the essence of the chicken bones and connective tissues, creating a pleasant chicken taste that isn’t as strong as you might expect.
Naturally, chicken bone broth isn’t particularly salty. The salt level depends entirely on how much you add during the cooking process. Most experts recommend adding salt sparingly and adjusting to your preference.
After you sip bone broth, you’ll notice it leaves a pleasant, slightly savory afternote that lingers on your palate, without any strong aftertaste.
How to Make Bone Broth Taste Good (Even If You Don’t Love It at First)
If your first taste of bone broth wasn’t exactly a “wow” moment, don’t worry! There are several strategies to help you develop a taste for it:
1. Add Familiar Flavors
Start by combining bone broth with regular soup stock. I know it sounds counterproductive, but trust me, this works wonders! Mix half bone broth with half chicken soup stock, then add an extra dash of salt, pepper, or whatever flavors you love.
Gradually, you can reduce the amount of soup stock and increase the bone broth until you’re drinking it straight. It’s similar to learning to enjoy black coffee after being used to cream and sugar (though personally, I think acquiring a taste for bone broth is easier than black coffee!).
2. Start Small
Take one sip of bone broth daily for a week. That’s it! The second week, increase to two sips daily. By the third week, try to drink ½ cup. After those 21 days, your brain will have learned that bone broth is its own unique food, and you might find you actually enjoy it.
3. Mix It Into Foods You Already Love
If sipping it straight isn’t working for you, try:
- Adding it to soups or stews (using bone broth for at least 50% of the liquid)
- Using it in mashed potatoes or other mashed vegetables instead of regular stock (the extra oil makes them creamier!)
- Incorporating it into sauces and gravies for added depth
- Using it to cook rice, risotto, or quinoa
- Adding it to your daily smoothie (I know, sounds weird, but the bland profile means it blends well with fruits and greens)
4. Customize the Flavor
Bone broth is highly versatile and can be customized to suit your taste preferences. Enhance the flavor by adding:
- Fresh herbs like thyme, rosemary, or bay leaves
- Aromatics like garlic, ginger, or lemongrass
- Vegetables like onions, carrots, and celery
- Spices like turmeric, black pepper, or cayenne for heat
Common Questions About Chicken Bone Broth
Can you drink chicken bone broth on its own?
Absolutely! Many people enjoy sipping it like tea, especially during cold months. It’s soothing and satisfying once you develop a taste for it.
Is chicken bone broth the same as chicken stock?
While similar, they’re not identical. Bone broth is simmered much longer (12-24 hours vs. 4-6 hours for stock), which extracts more collagen and gelatin from the bones. This extended cooking time contributes to bone broth’s unique texture and nutritional profile.
Can you substitute chicken bone broth for regular chicken broth?
Yes! The rich, robust flavors of bone broth will actually enhance the overall taste of your dish. It works wonderfully as a substitute in any recipe calling for regular chicken broth.
Can chicken bone broth be frozen?
Definitely. Freezing bone broth in portions makes it convenient to thaw and use whenever needed. Just leave enough headspace in your container to account for expansion as the broth freezes.
What Goes Into Making Chicken Bone Broth?
The main ingredients for making chicken bone broth are:
- Chicken bones (carcasses, necks, or wings)
- Water
- Aromatics (onions, carrots, celery)
- Herbs and spices
These ingredients work together during the long simmering process to create the distinctive flavor and nutrient-rich content that makes bone broth special.
My Personal Bone Broth Journey
When I first tried bone broth, I was honestly a bit disappointed. I expected something rich and salty like traditional chicken soup, but instead got this bland, oily liquid that didn’t match my expectations at all.
But I’d read so much about the benefits that I decided to give it a fair chance. I started by mixing it with regular chicken broth and adding plenty of salt and pepper. After a couple weeks, I noticed I was actually looking forward to my daily cup!
Now I drink it straight and even prefer it to regular broth in many recipes. The key was resetting my expectations – bone broth isn’t soup, and once I stopped comparing it to soup, I could appreciate its unique qualities.
Why Bother Developing a Taste for Bone Broth?
You might be wondering if it’s worth the effort to train your taste buds to enjoy bone broth. While I’m not a nutritionist, many health experts suggest bone broth contains beneficial nutrients like collagen, minerals, and amino acids that may support digestion and overall wellness.
Plus, once you get used to it, bone broth can become a comforting, satisfying addition to your diet – whether sipped on its own or used to enhance other dishes.
Wrapping Up
Chicken bone broth has a savory, rich, and slightly meaty flavor with a distinctive texture that sets it apart from regular chicken broth. While it might not be love at first sip for everyone, with a bit of patience and some flavor adjustments, most people can learn to appreciate its unique qualities.
Whether you decide to drink it straight, mix it into other foods, or use it as a cooking ingredient, chicken bone broth can be a valuable addition to your culinary repertoire. Just remember – it’s not soup broth, and that’s actually a good thing!
What Does Bone Broth Taste Like?
Here’s the nitty gritty guide on what bone broth actually tastes like. If you’ve never had a sip, then remove the notion that it tastes like chicken noodle soup broth or beef soup broth. It does not. There are two key differences between how soup broth and bone broth taste:
- Soup stock is often very flavorful and in many cases, salty. Bone broth is often more bland and does not taste salty.
- Soup stock is a thin liquid; bone broth has an oily texture and feels thicker in the mouth.
These two differences are often what make bone broth jarring to the first-time drinker. I’ve heard people say the bland taste was what they couldn’t get past, while others were unpleasantly surprised how oily it felt in their mouth. Truthfully, the first thought I had when I first tried bone broth back in the day was, “It felt like I was drinking melted coconut oil, with a very watered down soup taste.”
Not very appealing! However, I did learn to like it, and it really wasn’t that hard, especially with this bone broth sipping guide on hand.
How to Make Bone Broth Taste Good
So maybe you’re like me and your first taste of bone broth was not exactly pleasant. Do you give up on this popular wellness trend and ignore the potential benefits? Of course not!
Here’s the secret for working bone broth into your diet while teaching your taste buds that it’s not a bad thing. Part of learning to like bone broth involves educating your brain that it is not, in fact, soup. The association of soup and broth brings with it the expectation that when you see it, it will in fact taste like soup when it hits your mouth. It will not and the brain needs a little help in sidestepping this.
First, add flavors that you are familiar with. You can start by combining bone broth with soup stock. It sounds counterproductive, but trust me, this is a good place to start. You can combine with beef or chicken soup stock. Then add an extra dash of salt or pepper, or whatever flavors your mouth truly loves, and sip away.
Eventually, you can reduce the amount of soup broth and increase the amount of bone broth. After doing this for awhile, you can leave out the soup broth altogether and keep adding that extra bit of salt and pepper. This should eventually lead to decreasing the amount until you realize that you’re good with just the plain bone broth.
The process is a bit like learning to like black coffee after getting used to coffee with cream and sugar. (If you hate black coffee, don’t give up here—it’s just an analogy. I believe it is easier to acquire the taste of bone broth than it is for black coffee if you’re not already a black coffee lover.)
If adding flavors you’re familiar with doesn’t work, try mixing it into something else. This can mean adding bone broth to a soup or stew you’ve made, making sure to use bone broth for at least 50 percent of the liquid so that you’re starting to work that taste in. Add it to mashed potatoes or other mashed vegetables instead of chicken stock (it actually makes them creamier because there is more oil in the bone broth!).
If adding and mixing seems like too much work, then all you have to do is start small. Take one sip daily of bone broth for a week. That’s it. After the first week, take two sips daily. By the third week, aim to drink ½ cup. After those 21 days, your brain will have learned a new habit—that bone broth is its own unique food, and that it’s really quite good.