How to Make Vegetable Broth with Kitchen Scraps
Making homemade vegetable broth has never been easier! Now you can make your own vegetable broth using kitchen scraps.
There’s little waste and you always have fresh broth on hand for Lentil and Butternut Squash Chili or Summer Vegetable Chili.
Vegetable Broth from Scraps
Making homemade vegetable broth just got so much easier! I started making my own vegetable broth beginning of this year using kitchen scraps. It was actually my husband’s idea and it totally took off in our house.
Now I don’t throw away my kitchen scraps but instead, I save them for the broth. I love that I can reduce waste and have homemade broth in my freezer for soups.
What Vegetables Are Good for Broth
Before you make the vegetable broth you want to collect a bagful of kitchen scraps. Wash all the vegetables before you peel, slice, chop, etc. You can save the peelings, stalks, and leaves.
Onions, carrots, celery, and garlic are the key ingredients. But there are so many other vegetables that can add flavors such as bell peppers, leeks, green onions, and mushrooms.
The list goes on. The best way to make a vegetable broth from scraps is to simply experiment to see what tastes good to you.
Also, fresh herbs, such as thyme, parsley, cilantro and rosemary are all great additions to a veggie broth.
What Not to Put in Vegetable Broth
Stay away from cruciferous veggies, such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts as they can leave bitter flavor in the broth.
Zucchini and green beans tend to become bitter as well when simmered for a long period of time.
Also, some starchy vegetables like potatoes and turnips will make for a cloudy vegetable stock. Beets are too overpowering with their color and taste.
Wash your vegetables before using the scraps and stay away from anything with mold.
HOW TO SAVE SCRAPS FOR VEGGIE BROTH: Store your scraps in a gallon size zip-loc bag in the freezer. Simple as that. Keep adding to the bag until it is completely full. Make sure to get all the air out of the bag to avoid freezer burn.
Veggie Broth Recipe
When ready to make the broth, you will need: gallon-size bagful of frozen veggie scraps. I pack mine up pretty good. Coriander seeds, whole peppercorns, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme. That’s usually the base I use.
Depending on the veggie scraps I already have, I might add garlic, onions, parsley, and any other aromatics. Maybe if I don’t have celery and carrot scraps, I will add fresh ones.
How to Make Veggie Broth
Put your frozen scraps into a stock pot. You’ll need at least a 6-quart pot. Add water and the rest of the ingredients. You want enough water in the pot where you can easily stir the vegetables.
Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a bare simmer, and cook for 1 hour, uncovered.
After one hour, remove the pot from the stove. Cool slightly if needed. Using a skimmer or a slotted spoon, remove all the vegetables. You only want the liquid remaining.
Then set your strainer over a large bowl and pour the vegetable broth through. You should be left with nothing but clear and clean broth. I also like to put a cheesecloth over my strainer and run the broth one more time to ensure it is completely clean.
How to Store Homemade Veggie Broth
Let the broth cool completely before transferring into containers or freezer bags. I personally favor freezer bags over containers.
I will measure out 4 cups of broth for each bag and lay flat in the freezer. It thaws out much faster than when frozen in containers.
Refrigerate fresh broth for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.
4 Recipes with Vegetable Broth:
If you try Vegetable Broth with scraps recipe, don’t forget to leave feedback and a rating.
PrintHow to Make Vegetable Broth with Kitchen Scraps
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 mins
- Yield: 8–9 cups 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Simmer
- Cuisine: American
Description
Making homemade vegetable broth has never been easier! Now you can make your own vegetable broth using kitchen scraps. There’s little waste and you always have fresh broth on hand.
Ingredients
- 1 gallon bag of frozen veggie scraps, completely full
- 13–15 cups water
- 1 tsp. coriander seeds
- 1 tsp. whole peppercorns
- 2 bay leafs
- 1–2 sprigs each: fresh thyme, rosemary
- Optional extras: garlic, onions, parsley
Equipment
- Stock pot
- Slotted spoon or skimmer
- Strainer
- Storage containers
Instructions
- Add frozen vegetable scraps to a 6-quart stock pot. Add water and the remaining ingredients. You should have enough water in the pot where you can easily stir the vegetables.
- Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a bare simmer, and cook, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
- Take the pot off the stove and remove all the vegetables with a slotted spoon or a skimmer.
- Set your strainer over a large bowl and pour the broth through. Broth should be clean and clear without any impurities. You can also run the broth through a cheesecloth.
- Cool completely at room temperature and then divide into storage containers or gallon size freezer bags. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
- See recipe post for a list of vegetables that make the best veggie scrap broth and also vegetables that should be avoided.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 54
- Sugar: 3.1 g
- Sodium: 28.8 mg
- Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.5 g
- Protein: 1.4 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This post may contain affiliate links.
Recipe updated February 2020 with rewritten post and additional information. No change to the recipe.
This is how I always make my veg broth, a Vietnamese friend taught me. However, she didn’t mention the scraps to not use. Thank you. I really want to know if squash seeds are useable.
Do you save your asparagus trimmings?
I do not.
can you add hard cheese rinds to this recipe?
You know I’ve never tried adding a cheese rind to broth so I can’t answer with certainty. I know cheese rinds do well in soups so I’m assuming it could work. Let me know if you do try it.
I am allergic to carrots do u have a suggestion of what I can replace them with? Or just leave them out.
You can completely omit the carrots.
PARSNIPS MIGHT WORK
What do you do with the scraps after you’ve made the stock? Are they too soggy to compost?
Pretty much. I usually just toss them.
Not too soggy to compost. They should absolutely be composted.
iF YOU HAVE CHICKENS, THEY WOULD LOVE YOUR WASTE.. IF NOT THEN COMPOST THEM.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I’ll definitely try this one.
I hope you enjoy it! Thanks!
This a very “student-on-a-budget-friendly” recipe since my vegetable scraps are being reused. Expensive store-bought vegetable stock, never again. This batch used bell pepper cores, carrot peelings/tops, onion remnants, mushroom ends, and leftover garlic clove bits. Thanks for the recipe/concept, very easy to make!
So happy you found it helpful! Thank you for your feedback.
Can I put carrot tops in this broth. I’m looking to make this as soon as my bag is full.
Hi Sherry: Are you referring to the leafy tops? If so, then yes you definitely can.
Is it necessary to cut carrots up quite small or can I just cut a couple of thick ones to about three inches long? Lol I don’t usually buy or use carrots but a neighbor gave me a couple from her garden.
Hi Kimberley: Yes, you can definitely chop up the carrots roughly into bigger pieces. That should be just fine.
CHUNKS ARE FINE..NO NEED TO BE PICKY IN MAKING THIS BROTH. JUST OMIT YOUR CABBAGE FAMILY.
I was wondering if you ever canned the broth? I love to can things and was wondering how long you should let it boil in the canner. Thank!
Hi Sandy: I have not canned the broth so I can’t answer with certainty. However, you can easily freeze the broth in freezer safe containers or bags.
You would need to use a pressure canner to can Vegetable broth.
You can only use a pressure canner to can. It’s not acidic enough to use a water bath canning method.
Any suggestions for what to do with the scraps when you are done? Thanks!
You mean the cooked scraps? I usually toss them.
I throw them out. No nutrients left in them. I don’t even put in compost pile.
We typically raise a pig each year, so I do feed them to the pig after when I can. If you know anyone with a pig, they would enjoy them.:)
better to compost them anyway since food waste in landfills is a major contributor of methane gas to the atmosphere
Compost
Thank you so much for this recipe. I have been making this now for the last year, keeping all my veggie scraps and adding a few extra fresh ingredients. I cook from scratch every day for the two of us and usually have a bag full of scraps by the end of the week. I keep the stock in empty sparkling water bottles in the fridge and use it for almost everything- risotto, poaching chicken and fish, reheating veggies in the oven,- everything! Thank you so very much for sharing this and giving me the courage to play with it with whatever I have handy. The addition of the coriander seeds and peppercorns really helps to make this flavorsome. It isn’t always as clear as yours but I don’t mind- just shake up the bottle before I use it. Will never revert to nasty store bought again! we live in a tiny NYC apt and this goes to show you can do this and save food waste anywhere!
That’s so great Sue! So happy to hear you found this recipe helpful.
I, too, have been making this basic recipe for years and have made the same variation Sue did by adding chicken or turkey carcass/bones. Your suggestion for sparkling bottles is brilliant and one I will immediately begin using. I’m making broth today!
This looks like the perfect recipe for me! I haven’t tried making my own vegetable broth yet but this looks both easy, cheap and delicious! Question: I’ve heard from other people they use a crockpot to make their broth. Do you think it would have the same results?
Crockpot will work.
I love this homemade stock recipe! I perused other stock recipes and found that you can need add leafy greens. I added some lettuce leaves and spinach leaves. Also you can use the base of the lettuce head to the stock. I send Romain.i also added mushrooms.
My soup was literally the best soup I ever tasted!!! The difference between homemade stock and boxed is incomparable! I made vegetable soup. Oh, with the leafy greens, as you mentioned, don’t add too many.
I looked at many veggie stock recipes and I absolutely liked yours the best! Everyone who tasted this was amazed at how delicious it is! I now hardly throw any veggie scraps away! Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Thank you Nancy! So happy to hear you’re enjoying this recipe.
I have seen on a few other sites a suggestion for adding tomato paste and/or nutritional yeast. Have you tried this? If you have, how did it turn out? Thanks!
I can see how little tomato pasta might work but I haven’t tried it personally. As far as nutritional yeast, I am not sure about that as I haven’t tried it. Let me know how it works out if you do try it.
I’ve been making stocks and broths for years with scraps … I keep roast chicken/turkey bones/carcass and add some veggie scraps to those when making bone broth – it really enhances the flavor! Cherry tomatoes also add great flavor to a veggie broth. Our tomatoes are done growing and those left on the vines are a little limp so they’re going into the next broth! I use broth to cook rice – YUM!
Thank you for the tips Sandii!
I always save scraps for soup. I add a bit of Vegeta seasoning along with dry pimentos. I freeze some in ice cube trays and bag them. Sometimes you just need a cube of broth to thin out sauces.
Also, you can bury the cooked scraps in your garden. Great fertilizer.
I have found that blending the cooked vegetable scraps with an emertion blender before straining give a heartier broth
Thanks for the tip Paula! I will have to try that.
My stock is gritty, is there a way to strain out the grit?
I would use a cheesecloth over a fine mesh strainer. That will give you the cleanest stock.
Hi there!
Just wondering if you could put leafy greens: spinach, kale, and other ingredients you usually see in salad in this broth…. I have some baby spinach in the fridge that is 1 week ago… and just wondering if I could save it from going to waste :/
Thank you!
To be honest, I have not tried it with spinach nor any other type of leafy salad greens. But I think it should be okay in small amount.
I have a broth that turned bitter is there a way to fix that?
Hi Tanna: I have found that certain veggies such as cruciferous veggies (cauliflower, broccoli ,cabbage, etc) will cause bitter tasting stock. I just did a quick google search and found that adding more carrots will possibly add some sweetness to the stock and you may be able to save it. I’m sorry, I can’t be more helpful. I haven’t had any stock turn bitter on me.