Bone Broth and Three Ways to Stretch a Pastured Chicken

After the roast comes the second meal. Most people carve the bird and put the carcass in the trash. That is the most expensive mistake in home cooking — and with a pastured chicken, it stings twice. The carcass from a bird that spent its life on fresh pasture carries more collagen, more flavor, and more nutrients than anything from a conventional bird. Here is how to pull it out, and three recipes to carry you through the week.

Start with a whole roasted pastured chicken the night before. Once you have carved and served it, what is left — the backbone, the ribcage, the wing tips, the skin scraps — goes straight into a pot.

Making the Bone Broth

What you need:
- 1 chicken carcass, picked clean but not stripped (a little meat left on is fine)
- 1 medium onion, halved (no need to peel)
- 2 celery stalks, broken in half
- 1 medium carrot, halved
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (pulls minerals from the bones — optional but worth it)
- 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- Enough cold water to cover by 2 inches

Method:

Place the carcass in a large stockpot or Dutch oven. Add the onion, celery, carrot, bay leaf, vinegar, and peppercorns. Cover with cold water — cold water draws impurities out slowly rather than sealing them in, which gives you a cleaner broth.

Bring to a bare simmer over medium heat, then reduce to the lowest setting your burner allows. You want a few lazy bubbles at the surface, not a rolling boil. A hard boil makes the broth cloudy and breaks down the proteins in a way that muddies the flavor.

Simmer uncovered for 3 to 4 hours. You do not need to hover — check it once an hour to make sure it is not boiling and top off with water if it drops below the bones.

Signs of a good pastured broth: When it is done, the liquid will look thin and pale gold. That is fine — the magic happens in the refrigerator. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer and discard the solids. Let it cool, then refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, a good pastured broth will be a quivering gel — not quite solid, but not liquid either. That is the collagen from the bones, and it is the mark of a real broth. A conventional broth will stay watery. Store for up to 5 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.

Uses: rice cooked in broth instead of water, braised greens, the base for the three recipes below.

---

Recipe 1: Classic Chicken Salad

This is the fastest way to use the pulled breast and thigh meat left on the carcass before it goes in the pot. You will get 1 to 1.5 cups of pulled meat from a well-roasted 4–5 lb bird.

Ingredients (serves 2–3):
- 1 to 1.5 cups cooked, shredded chicken (breast and thigh)
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 celery stalk, finely diced
- Juice of half a lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste

Optional additions: a tablespoon of chopped pickles, a teaspoon of capers, a tablespoon of plain Greek yogurt to lighten the mayo.

Method: Shred the chicken with two forks — do not dice it. Shredded chicken holds dressing better than chunks and gives you a better texture in the sandwich. Mix the mayo, mustard, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Add the celery and chicken and fold together. Taste and adjust salt.

Serving: on sourdough with a handful of arugula, or on crackers as a quick lunch. It keeps in the fridge for 3 days.

---

Recipe 2: Leftover Chicken Soup

This takes 20 minutes and uses the bone broth you made. It is the most weeknight-practical thing you can do with a leftover bird.

Ingredients (serves 4):
- 4 cups chicken bone broth (from above)
- 1 to 1.5 cups cooked, shredded chicken
- 1 cup egg noodles or a handful of rice (or omit for a lighter soup)
- 1 medium carrot, thinly sliced
- 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Salt, pepper, a squeeze of lemon

Method: In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium. Add onion, carrot, and celery and cook 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Pour in the broth and bring to a simmer. Add the noodles or rice and cook according to package time. Stir in the shredded chicken during the last 2 minutes — it only needs to warm through. Taste and season. Finish with a squeeze of lemon, which brightens the whole pot.

The soup keeps for 4 days in the fridge (pull out the noodles separately if you plan to freeze it — pasta goes mushy).

---

Recipe 3: Simple Chicken Pot Pie

This one uses the broth as the base of the sauce and whatever vegetables you have on hand. The skillet version skips the bottom crust, which cuts prep time in half without giving up any of the comfort.

Ingredients (serves 4):
- 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
- 1.5 cups chicken bone broth
- 1 cup frozen peas and carrots (or any frozen vegetable mix)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole milk or heavy cream
- Salt, pepper, fresh thyme
- 1 sheet puff pastry or refrigerated pie crust, thawed

Equipment: A 10-inch cast-iron skillet — the same skillet from the original roast. It goes from stovetop to oven without an extra dish and holds heat in a way that browns the bottom of the filling before the crust sets.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Melt the butter in the cast-iron over medium heat. Add the onion and cook 5 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and thyme and cook 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the top and stir constantly for 2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Slowly pour in the broth while stirring — it will thicken into a sauce. Add the milk and stir until smooth. Add the frozen vegetables and shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Remove from heat. Lay the puff pastry or pie crust over the top of the filling, tucking the edges in around the inside edge of the skillet. Cut two or three vents in the top with a knife.

Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 22–25 minutes until the crust is deep golden brown. Let it cool 5 minutes before serving directly from the skillet.

---

Reserve Your Bird for the August Pickup

One 4–5 lb pastured chicken from Homestead Whittington Farm gives you a full roast dinner plus bone broth, chicken salad, soup, and a pot pie — four meals from a single bird.

The August flock pickup is August 15–16, 2026, at the farm — 8:00 AM to noon both days. Birds are weighed fresh at pickup and priced at $5 per pound. A 4–5 lb bird runs $20–$25.

Pre-orders close 48 hours before pickup, or when shares sell out — whichever comes first. Reserve your spot on the next-flock page and we will confirm your share by email.

Drop your name and email below and we will notify you when the August pre-order opens.