Throw Me a Freakin’ Bone

…for my broth.

Cellulite? Gone. Wrinkles? Disappear. You’ll be bouncing around pain free because your cartilage and joints will be just like when you were thirteen. The secret…collagen.

Is collagen really the secret to a more youthful body? Perhaps, but let’s be real- it’s not going to take us back in time.

There are different ways to take-in collagen, the most popular as of late being bone broth. This magical broth provides us with nutrients we used to get more often a few decades ago. But, as life progresses habits change, for the good and the bad.

What happened to collagen?

Perhaps we should go back in time for a little perspective. Back about 100 years or so, imagine walking down the aisle of your neighborhood grocer. Where’s the baker? Flour, sugar, but no baker. That’s a different shop. Keep walking. Where’s the butcher? Try next door. Produce? Think again. They’re across the street. A stark difference from what we have today, isn’t it?

At these grocers you would most likely find canned and dried goods, or non-perishables. No chips, pastas, juices or condiments that we have entire aisles for today. More bulk and less single size packaging. Less waste in a way, as most everything had a purpose and repurpose. It was a time of waste not want not, because who had the money for that. That, and, why waste?

Many items and dishes were made from scratch. Cake and bread? Made at home or on a occasion, the baker. Sauce for your spaghetti? Nona boiled the tomatoes. Bone broth? Definitely made at home. Regardless of class, more of what folks ate was created in the household kitchen.

As refrigeration became more efficient (freon vs. icebox) and available not only on train cars but on trucks that could travel the interstate highway system, and the advent of chemical preservatives to extend shelf-life, supermarket chains that were able to lower prices and offer the convenience of one stop shopping for all your consumable needs were becoming the predominant means of obtaining food items. Fast forward back to today, from spaghetti noodles to sliced bread to frozen pizza, rare is the dish that cannot be found already made for you in its entirety or in parts.

Why spend an hour making pasta when it is super cheap and already made for you? Why go through the process of letting bread rise when you can get a loaf of Italian bread at the store for 99 cents? Why boil bones for 24 hours when you can get broth at the store? In today’s world, ease of use and time-efficiency are top priorities. So it makes sense that we no longer have bone broth all the time, or homemade bread and pasta with sauce. It’s just easier to get the bag or jar. But, is it the best thing?

Is store-bought the same?

In the past if someone were to prepare from scratch, let’s say a chicken, they would buy it from the butcher, or more recently, the meat counter at the supermarket. They would maybe have the innards removed or maybe this would be taken care of at home so they can be cooked in other ways. A little seasoning and perhaps some stuffing and in the oven the chicken goes. Later that night, everyone ooo’s and ahh’s at the flavorful chicken dinner.

Now, what happens to the bones? Waste not, want not, the bones, with a little bit of meat and a few vegetables, are placed in a pot to boil for either stock or broth, which would then be used either as a base for sauces and or soups. When the bones cook for an extended amount of time, collagen is released. People were getting collagen all the time and didn’t even know it! Or maybe they did, but it wasn’t as big a deal as today;-).

In our efforts to get things done faster and cheaper, we have cut out some of the nutrition in our lives. You can get bone broth or any number of products from the store, but how long has it been sitting there? And if it has been there for a while, how is it possible you can still consume it? It could be frozen or vacuum sealed, which isn’t bad, but it might be that something that didn’t need to be added was (salt, sugar or other additive). Isn’t fresh best?

Right now there is a movement back towards scratch baking and cooking. When you DIY (do it yourself) you can control taste and quality. Most likely, you are using fresh ingredients so the nutrient value is higher and you are only making what you plan to eat, so less waste food waste. Depending on what you are making there is less package waste, too. Double bonus!!

I can do that!

It’s totally understandable why folks don’t make their own bone broth or do scratch baking. For one, as we have already established, it’s cheap and faster to just buy it. Another reason is that most of us never got the lesson on how. You know what? It’s not that hard. The first time for anything is difficult, but this is not heart surgery.

Making bone broth is pretty straight forward (link below to a site I have used) and economical. It’s especially easy if you are already roasting a chicken. If you aren’t, just ask your butcher or meat counter attendant for bone broth bones (they should know what to give you). After your second or third go around, you’ll be a pro and know exactly what you like in your broth. In addition to it tasting exactly how you like, because you made it, it is at its peak for nutritional value as opposed to what you could get at the store.

Oh, collagen

It’s not going to take you back to your teenage-like self, but may be making you more nutritionally well-rounded. And more so, the process of making a collagen infused bone broth might open a door to a life of less waste and more taste in the form of scratch cooking and baking. It could be an all new and totally fun adventure!

Further “food” for thought

Have you ever thought that part of the reason there is obesity epidemic is because of the ease with which we can obtain food and the lack of appreciation for how it is made?

How much time do you think you could spend on scratch cooking and baking per week?

Is there a dish either your grandparents or parents made when you were younger that you would like to learn how to make?