Try this Instant Pot Vegetable Broth recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 7.29999750157215 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 13.7774850275242 g
- Fiber 1.7106749782277 g
- Protein 1.6089475006823 g
- Saturated Fat 1.91909000378542 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (3825g)
- Sodium 162.162999693746 mg
- Sugar 5.58932252334445 g
- Trans Fat 0.428696000760268 g
- Calories 152 calories
Step-by-step
- Begin collecting all of your vegetable scraps. Some of my favorites are; carrot tops, bell pepper stems, onion ends, celery, beets, turnips, and zucchini. Store them in a gallon size bag in your freezer.
- Once the bag is full it's time to make broth! Empty the contents of your scrap bag into your electric pressure cooker. I like to put my scraps inside a steamer basket that fits inside my pressure cooker, it makes straining easier.
- Add the filtered water, garlic cloves, olive oil, parsley, bay leaves, basil, thyme, sea salt, sage, and black pepper to the pot.
- Place the lid on the cooker and make sure the pressure knob is in the SEALING position. Using the display panel select the MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK function, high pressure, and use the +/- buttons until the display reads 40 minutes.
- When the cooker beeps to let you know it's finished, turn off your pot and let it naturally release the pressure. Once the pin has dropped and the liquid has cooled, use a ladle set over a large bowl to strain the liquid.
- If using a steamer basket, carefully lift the basket out of the pressure cooker and use a potato masher to push on the vegetables to strain any remaining broth. Add the scraps to your compost pile or throw them out.
- Once the liquid has cooled completely store in glass jars inside the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Scrap Selection and Composition
Rethink the contents of that freezer bag before sealing the lid, because cruciferous brassicas like broccoli and cabbage release sulfur compounds that ruin the entire batch during high heat processing. Stick strictly to alliums, carrot peelings, and mushroom stems for neutral clarity. Adding a tablespoon of olive oil introduces essential lipids that capture fat-soluble aromatic compounds escaping into the steam.
Pressure Extraction Mechanics
Electric pressure cookers accelerate extraction by raising the boiling point of water past standard limits, forcing cell walls to rupture faster than traditional simmering methods. Cooking at high pressure for forty minutes forces maximum soluble starches and minerals out of the fibrous plant matter without dissolving the cellulose entirely into mush. Allow a full natural pressure release rather than quick-releasing, which forces violent boiling and churns suspended fine particles back into the liquid.
Straining and Storage Parameters
Lifting a perforated steamer basket out of the cooker prevents the mess of tipping heavy liquid containers, but pressing the spent vegetables too aggressively with a masher forces cloudy starches through the mesh. Strain the hot liquid through a fine-mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth if crystal-clear broth is desired. Chill the strained liquid completely before sealing glass jars, and consume the contents within seven days or freeze them immediately.
