Basic GAPS Chicken Broth

Broth.

I think the very word is synonymous to most people as... boring. You know, that part of the soup that is the absolute least thought of. It is what happens when you mixed the over-chemicaled-over-salted- condensed soups with water. Or, if you are brave, it is what you, in our busy modern life, open a carton for when you make " homemade" soup. Perhaps if you are recalling the 70's it may be even what you put a cube of practically nutrition-less bullion into a hot cup of water to drink as a diet food.

Not so with GAPS.
In the GAPS diet, broth ( Chicken, duck, beef etc.) is a staple, and here's why. True broth... REAL broth, is a very easily digestible food that is extremely high in nutrients for it's digestibility (and lack of bad-bacteria-feeding-sugar.) In fact, it is one of the best and most healing foods. So, at the beginning of the GAPS program, she has you start with LOTS and lots of broth.
But Dr. Campbell-McBride wants you to have REAL broth; not the chemical-infested, over-salted, artificially flavored and uber-preserved junk. ( are you sick of my hyphens yet? )
Dr. Campbell-McBride has you do broth the old fashioned way. So my recipe today, is doing chicken broth... like your grandparents did it when they were kids. ( excepting maybe the use of an electric stove and kitchen shears. ;)

So here is the recipe. " GAPS friendly", simple and imho the absolute best way to drink it. =)

Basic GAPS Chicken Broth (Sarah's style)

Start with a 1 1/2 gallon (or 6 quart) kettle or crock pot. ( Yes, this recipe makes a lot... But it goes quick when you're on the diet)

Fill it with pure (non-city) water, leaving a little space at the top of the kettle for displacement.

Add:

1 to 1 1/2 TBS salt.

15-20 whole black peppercorns. Cracked, not ground. ( We, honestly, put them in a little plastic lunch bag and smack them with a hammer a few times. ^_^ It works great!)

AAAaaand of course the chicken.
In this case, 1/2 of an organically grown (thawed and rinsed) chicken.
(The easiest way to end up with half of it, that we have found, is to cut it right down the middle with big pair of kitchen shears. Put the other half in a baggy in the freezer and save it for later. )

(This could also be done with about 3 lbs of organic chicken legs, and thighs etc. (approximately 6 of them)

So yes.. All of this goes into the kettle, and you put the kettle and turn it on. When it boils turn it down to a simmer, put the lid on the kettle and let it boil for at 3-4 hours. (8 hours or so on low for crockpot) Turn it off, make sure the chicken is tender. Strain the chicken and peppercorns out, and voila! You have homemade chicken broth!
*nom* It can ( and for GAPS is supposed to be) drunk as it is. It can also be made into any chicken-based soup you wish. It can have various fresh herbs added (to broth or soups ) for different flavors, or simply left plain, cooled and stored in the freezer for use at a later date.
Enjoy! =)

Note: For old style, "bone broth" once you have removed the boiled chicken from the bones; (to eat or put in soups) save the bones, skin and gristle; put them back in a kettle of fresh water; follow the same recipe as for the chicken broth with everything except put the bones and skin in instead of the chicken. Let this new kettle boil for 6+ hours, strain out the bones and you've got yourself another entire pot of broth! =)

Another Note:
Organic chicken, or better yet locally grown free-range chicken is FAR FAR Better than the anemic store-bought kind. Not just for the chemical content either. No lie. My mother and I did several pots of broth, and you can literally see an extreme difference in color of the store bought normal chicken vs the organic or free-range chicken. The taste and nutrition difference is profound as well. The broth I have pictured is made from a local free-range chicken. It is covered in golden fat ( that is full of vitamin A) and tastes positively amazing compared to any of the broth I've previously made. =) =)

My Favoritist Ever ( so far) Homemade Chicken Coconut Curry.

Curry.

Deliciousness in a word.

The problem with curry is simply that almost every bit of Indian food out there, (including curries) involves at least some form of dairy. (This ( as far as I'm concerned) = * big sigh* Are you with me here?) A good friend of mine just made a lovely Indian recipe that I felt illustrated that rather well. * laughs* It involved... not one... not two...or even three, but four forms of dairy. Sadly, for us dairy-free people, that's not all that unusual. So, how do you make amazing chicken curry without dairy?

*points to recipe excitedly* Like this. XD

Coconut Chicken Curry

2 ½ Tblsp Olive oil and

2 Medium onions

1 small piece ( aprox 1 inch piece) of fresh ginger (grated) [Or 1 tsp ground dried ginger]

2 Tbs Tomato paste

2 Tbs Curry powder

½ Tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 Cinnamon stick

½ tsp ground chipotle chill pepper

1 Can coconut milk

1 (15 oz) Can chicken broth

2 medium/small tomatoes seeded and chopped

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts ( cut into 1” strips)

2 ½ Tbs fresh cilantro ( or 3 tsp dried)

3 Tbs lemon juice

Also ½ cup cold water and

3 heaping Tbls corn starch

Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed skillet or pan over medium-low heat. Add onions, ginger, and cook until the onions are soft and transparent. ( about 15 minutes)

(I know , I know. The recipe is just starting here but seriously, I think the smell of the onions and ginger together [though a bit pungent] is just awesome.)

Add tomato paste, curry powder, cinnamon stick, and chilli pepper. Stir and season with salt and pepper. Add coconut milk and chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes. Add tomatoes, chicken, cilantro and lemon juice. Simmer until chicken is cooked trough, ( about 10-15 minutes.) Thicken mixture with ½ cup water and 2 heaping tablespoons of corn starch.

Remove cinnamon stick. Serve over gluten free fettuccine ( a little unconventional but extremely good!) It also can be served over rice, or with gluten free Indian flat bread.

( feeds about 5 hungry eaters)

Aaaaaaand the traditional adding of optional garlic ( 2-3 cloves) if you so desire.

More options:

Mom also suggested that this would be good with 8 oz fresh mushrooms washed cut and cooked in. And …. although I usually protest against her proclivity too add mushrooms to everything X) in this case I may agree... on occasion. =)

(Special thanks to my mother and brother with their major amounts of help with this one!)