As the days are becoming chillier, and my kids are waking up with the familiar snotty-nose and bleary eyes, I’ve gone back to my time-honoured, kitchen staple, the MASTER-TONIC of fish broth and medicinal herbs.
‘Fish Broth will cure anything’ - South American Proverb
Why Broth?
The idea of slow-cooking gelatinous off-cuts of meat and bones is as old as cookery itself. Bone broth was one of the first nourishing meals that humans were able to prepare - usually with a pot or cauldron simmering over an open fire, or a wide turtle-shell perched over hot coals.
Given the key nutritional properties of a well-prepared bone broth, it is easy to see why it’s universally revered. Broth provides an easily-digestible source of key nutrients; trace minerals such as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and silicon that are well-assimilated in the digestive tract. Plus hydrophilic colloids - elements that attract and stimulate digestive juices helping to restore the integrity of the gut wall.
A few reasons why I love fish broth
Whilst chicken and beef have become protagonists of the post-war food industry, fish stock has slipped quietly to the sidelines. I rarely am able to find good quality fish stock in food stores or supermarkets, and the ingredients for a good fish base are generally waste products that are given away for free (yes, really). Here’s a few good reasons, I hope you can give it a try:
Time-saving. While larger bones (beef, lamb, pork or chicken) can take hours, if not days to become soft and gelatinous, fish broth, with its tiny, thin bones can be ready much quicker (usually 1-2 hours, depending on your cooking method and utensils).
Cost-effective. I usually pay anywhere from $4-10 per kilo for good quality chicken, lamb or beef bones. Whereas fish bones and fish heads are still considered ‘scraps’ in most western food markets. My local fish shop gives the heads and bones away for free. And if i have ever had to purchase them, they are usually very cheap, as markets often discard when they are not used.
Key nutrients. Most importantly, there are several key nutrients in fish broth that are difficult to find in other food sources. If you are able to cook with the fish heads, they are an excellent source of gelatin and easy-to-absorb collagen which is beneficial for skin, bones and digestive health.
Fish heads also contain good amounts of iodine, trace minerals, and the thyroid gland. And this combination of nutrients, slow-cooked with herbs and vegetables into a broth, is considered a traditional remedy for a weak or poor-functioning thyroid gland.
(sidenote - recovering from severe hashimotos disease, Miracle Fish Stock together with the GAPS diet, was a key component of my healing protocol).
And One More Thing…
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RECIPES
This week I’m sharing three recipes that you can keep on rotation during the winter months -
Miracle Fish Broth.
Pick-Me-Up Miso Tonic.
Miracle Marseille Broth.
Miracle Fish Broth:
This broth combines the nutrients of the collagen and key minerals from the fish heads, plus the medicinal herbs and vegetables from the garden. This recipe can be made well in advance, and boiled down to small quantities for easy storage.
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